REESE    LIBRARY    ' 

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NIVERSITY   OF   CALIFORNIA, 
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•' 


LECTURES 


ON  THE 


SACRED 


POETRY  OF  THE  HEBREWS 


By  ROBERT  LOWTH,  D.  D. 

LORD   BISHOP  OF  LONDON. 


TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  ORIGINAL  LATIN  BY  G.  GREGORY,  P.  A.^ 


A  NEW  EDITION  WITH  NOTES 


BY 

r        - 

E.  STOWE,  A.  M. 


Opus  er.im  de  Sacra  Poesi  absolutissimum,  nemo  cat,  opinor,  in  his  studiis  versatus,  qui  non 
perlegerit ;  nemo,  cui  non  summam  admirationem  attulerit  cum  argumenti  dignitas,  et  eruditi 
auctoris  singulare  judicium,  tuosi  Latini  sermouis  venustas  a,c  nitor.  Sir  William  Jones. 


K^    V^       OF  THE  Mi 

rairivEBSiTYi 
&*ate&. 


PRINTED    AT    THE     CODMAN    PRESS    BY   FLAGG    AND    GOULD, 

FOR  CROCKER  <fc  BREWSTER, 

NO.  47,  WASHINGTON  ST.  BOSTON, 

AND  J.  LEAVITT,  NO.  182, 

BROADWAY,   NEW  YORK.  _ 

1829. 


- 1*°, 


DISTRICT  OF  MASSACHUSETTS,  to  wit : 

District  Clerk's  Office. 
'"  '-fourth  year 
district,  has  de- 


B«  it  remembered,  that  on  the  3d  day  of  October,  A.  D.  1829,  in  the  fifty-fourth  year  of 
the  Independence  of  the  United  States  of  America.  Flaeg  &.  Gould,  of  the  said  district,  has  de- 
posited in  this  Office  the  title  of  a  book,  the  right  whereof  they  claim  as  Proprietors,  in  the  words 


ollowing,  to  wit  .•  '•  Lectures  on  the  Sacred  Poetry  of  the  Hebrews,  by  Robert  Lowth,  D.  D.  Lord 
Bishop  of  London  Translated  from  the  original  Latin  by  G.  Gregory,  F.  A.  S.  A  new  Edition 
with  Notes  by  Calvin  E.  Stowe,  A.  M.  '  Opus  enim  de  Sacra  Poesi  absolutissimurn,  nemo  est, 
opinor,  in  his  studiis  versatus,  qui  non  perlegerit ;  nemo,cui  non  summam  admirationem  attule- 
rit  cum  argument!  dignitas,  et  eruditi  auctoris  singulare  judicium,  turn  Latini  sermonis  venustas 
ac  nitor.'" — Sir  William  Jones.  In  conformity  to  the  Act  of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States, 
entitled,  "  An  Act  for  the  encouragement  of  Learning,  by  securing  the  copies  of  maps,  charts,  and 
books  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  of  such  copies,  during  the  times  therein  mentioned  :"  and 
also  to  an  act  entitled, ;  An  act  supplementary  to  an  act ,  entitled,  An  act  for  the  encouragement 
of  learning,  by  securing  the  copies  of  maps,  charts  and  books,  to  the  authors  and  proprietors  of 
such  copies  during  the  times  therein  mentioned;  and  extending  the  benefits  thereof  to  the  arts  of 
designing,  engraving  and  etching  historical  and  other  prints." 

JOHN  W.  DAV.S,  j 


UNIVERSITY 


PREFACE. 


AT  different  periods  in  the  history  of  mankind,  Providence 
raises  up  men  who  are  destined  to  effect  a  complete  revolution 
in  the  intellectual  character  of  their  age,  and  to  exert  an  influ- 
ence which  will  not  cease  while  time  endures.  These  are  the 
leaders  of  the  human  race  in  the  career  of  improvement,  an  of- 
fice for  which  they  are  fitted  only  by  unyielding  independence  and 
hardihood  of  understanding,  the  result  of  a  peculiarly  happy  men- 
tal structure  cooperating  with  peculiar  circumstances ;  and  they 
deserve,  more  than  any  others,  the  title  of  vicegerents  of  God  on 
earth,  for  under  Him  and  by  His  appointment  they  rule  the  world 
of  mind. 

Of  this  number  was  ROBERT  LOWTH,  a  name  which  will  ever 
be  held  in  veneration  by  the  student  of  Sacred  Literature.  His 
father,  the  REV.  WILLIAM  LOWTH,  who  was  Chaplain  to  the 
Bishop  of  Winchester  and  Prebendary  of  a  Cathedral  Church  in 
that  See,  is  known  as  the  author  of  commentaries  on  several 
books  of  the  Old  Testament,  which  rank  among  the  best  of  their 
time ;  and  to  the  favourite  pursuits  of  the  father  we  are  perhaps 
indebted  for  the  labours  and  celebrity  of  the  son.  ROBERT  was 
born  at  Winchester  in  the  year  1710,  and  received  the  first  rudi- 
ments of  his  education  at  the  school  founded  in  that  city  by 
WILLIAM  OF  WYKEHAM.  He  there  distinguished  himself,  at  a 
very  early  age,  as  a  classical  and  Hebrew  scholar,  and  a  poet. 
In  1728  he  was  sent  to  New  College,  Oxford ;  of  which  he  was 
elected  Fellow  in  1734  ;  took  the  degree  of  M.  A.  in  1737  ;  and 
in  1741  succeeded  JOSEPH  SPENCE  as  Professor  of  Poetry  in  that 
University.  It  was  in  discharge  of  the  duties  of  this  office  that 
he  delivered  his  justly  celebrated  Lectures  entitled  :  De  Sacra 
Poesi  Hebraeorum  Praelectiones  Academicae  ;  of  which  the  first 


IV  PREFACE. 


edition  was  published  in  1753,  about  a  year  after  the  expiration 
of  the  term  of  his  Professorship,  and  a  second  in  1763. 

Though  LOWTH,  when  he  accepted  his  Professorship,  had 
but  just  completed  the  thirtieth  year  of  his  age,  and  had  never 
before  appeared  in  a  public  character,  he  immediately  formed  a 
design  which  would  have  done  honour  to  mature  age  and  long 
experience.  This  was  no  other  than  to  reclaim  from  the  dust  of 
ages  and  the  rubbish  of  allegorizing  mystics,  the  relics  of  prime- 
val poetry  preserved  in  the  Sacred  Writings  of  the  Hebrews,  to 
set  them  in  their  true  light,  and  prove  them  worthy  the  attention 
and  favour  of  men  of  taste.  It  was  his  purpose  to  discover  the 
true  spirit  and  meaning  of  the  genuine  oracles  of  God,  and  to 
disjoin  them  from  the  rude  and  tasteless  additions  of  unin- 
spired interpreters.  CALVIN  and  GROTIUS  had  already  given 
noble  examples  of  acute  and  logical  exegesis  of  the  Scriptures  ; 
SIMON  and  LECLERC  had  prepared  the  way  for  the  investigation 
of  their  history ;  SELDEN  had  searched  out  the  numerous  hints 
which  they  give  respecting  ancient  manners  and  domestic  life ; 
MILTON  had  explored  their  rich  stores  of  poetic  imagery  ;  and 
many  other  distinguished  scholars,  as  VITRINGA,  BUXTORF, 
BOCHART,  and  LIGHTFOOT,  had  laboured  successfully  in  differ- 
ent departments  of  Sacred  Literature  :  but  no  one  had  yet  arisen 
to  survey  accurately  the  whole  ground,  to  assign  the  boundaries 
of  safe  investigation,  to  present  the  student  with  a  clue  tha 
would  guide  him  through  the  labyrinth  of  conjecture  and  mysti 
cism,  to  collect  and  arrange  the  more  important  results  whic 
lay  scattered  in  the  writings  of  others,  to  look  on  the  Hebre 
Scriptures  with  the  eye  of  a  critic  and  the  heart  of  a  poet,  and  t 
give  to  Sacred  Interpretation  the  form  and  dignity  of  a  science. 
Notwithstanding  all  that  had  been  done,  but  few  general  and 
correct  principles  of  exegesis  had  as  yet  been  settled,  the  Bible 
had  never  been  viewed  in  its  true  light  as  a  work  of  taste,  the 
unnatural  and  barren  expositions  of  the  Rabbins  were  still  deem- 
ed authoritative ;  and  Christian  interpreters  were  wandering  in 
the  dark  wilds  of  mysticism,  or  exhausting  their  strength  and 
wasting  their  time  in  the  useless  search  of  etymologies  and  va- 
rious readings.  No  one,  indeed,  had  ever  ventured  to  express 
the  opinion  that  the  prophets  wrote  in  poetry,  excepting  the  ec- 


PREFACE. 


centric  HERMANN  VAN  DER  HARDT,  who  threw  out  this  among  the 
other  fancies  of  his  prolific  brain,  (and  the  idea  then  lost  all  re- 
putation by  appearing  in  such  company)  ;  and  the  learned  Vi- 
TRINGA,  who  had  given  a  hint  to  that  effect  in  his  Commentary  on 
ISAIAH. 

Under  these  circumstances  LOWTH  appeared,  with  the  deter- 
mination and  the  ability  to  breathe  a  new  spirit  into  the  whole 
business  of  sacred  study.  He  was  peculiarly  qualified  for  a 
task  so  delicate  and  arduous.  To  an  enthusiastic  love  for  the 
Scriptures  he  added  a  remarkable  vigour  and  comprehensiveness 
of  mind,  a  singular  acuteness  and  accuracy  of  judgement,  a  fine 
poetic  taste  chastened  and  corrected  by  an  intimate  acquaintance 
with  the  Classics  of  Greece  and  Rome,  which  prevented  his  be- 
ing misled  by  the  errors  of  others  or  blinded  by  fancies  of  his 
own;  and  he  was  gifted  with  a  command  of  language  and  a  fe- 
licity of  illustration,  and  withal,  a  modesty  and  reserve  of  manner, 
which  secured  the  attention  and  engaged  the  affections  of  all  who 
listened  to  his  instructions. 

With  such  talents  and  such  qualifications,  success  could  not 
long  remain  doubtful.  LOWTH  broke  through  the  trammels  of 
false  taste  and  erroneous  theology,  penetrated  to  the  secret  retire- 
ments of  the  Hebrew  Muse,  discovered  and  developed  the  true 
nature  and  genuine  sources  of  the  Sacred  Poetry,  marked  out  the 
boundaries  of  its  several  departments  and  assigned  to  each  its  ap- 
propriate characteristics,  and  led  the  way  to  anew  and  more  per- 
fect mode  of  Scriptural  interpretation  ;  and  by  the  exquisite  spe- 
cimens of  translation  with  which  he  illustrated  and  enriched  his 
Lectures,  he  proved  that  the  soaring  genius  and  refined  taste  of 
the  poet  may  be  united  with  the  severe  accuracy  of  the  critic,  the 
gravity  of  the  theologian,  and  the  religious  sensibility  of  the  devout 
Christian.  The  effect  was  wonderful.  LOWTH  was  immediate- 
ly caressed  and  honoured  by  all  the  patrons  of  learning  in  his  own 
country,  and  hailed  on  the  continent  of  Europe  as  the  former  of 
a  new  era  in  the  literary  world  ;  for  it  was  his  work  on  the  He- 
brew Poetry  which  first  directed  the  attention  of  the  studious 
Germans  to  a  department  of  literature  which  they  have  since  pur- 
sued with  such  untiring  zeal  and  astonishing  success.  In  Eng- 
land he  has  had  many  admirers,  but  no  successor. 


VI  PREFACE. 


In  1748  MR.LOWTH  attended  the  HON.  MR.  LEGGE,  afterwards 
Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer,  to  the  Court  of  Berlin,  then  the 
residence  of  FREDERIC  THE  GREAT  ;  and  the  next  year,  took 
charge  of  the  sons  of  the  Duke  of  Devonshire,  as  their  travelling 
tutor  on  the  continent.  The  manner  in  which  he  discharged  his 
duty  in  this  capacity,  secured  to  him  the  favour  and  lasting  friend- 
ship of  the  Duke.  In  J754  he  received  the  degree  of  D.  D. 
from  the  University  of  Oxford  ;  and  the  next  year  he  was  nom- 
inated first  Chaplain  to  the  Marquis  of  Hartington,  Lord  Lieuten- 
ant of  Ireland.  Thither  he  attended  that  nobleman,  and  was 
soon  offered  the  Bishopric  of  Limerick,  which  he  exchanged 
with  DR.  LESLIE,  an  Irishman,  for  a  Prebend  in  the  Diocess  of 
Durham  in  his  own  country.  In  1758  he  preached  at  Durham 
a  sermon  on  Free  Inquiry  in  Matters  of  Religion,  which  has  been 
much  celebrated  and  often  reprinted  ;  and  in  the  subsequent  year, 
he  published  a  Life  of  WYKEHAM,  Bishop  of  Winchester,  and 
founder  of  the  school  in  which  he  received  his  early  education. 
Soon  after,  he  published  an  Introduction  to  English  Grammar, 
a  work  which  first  awakened  the  attention  of  Englishmen  to  the 
study  of  their  own  language,  and  for  a  long  time  remained  the 
text-book  of  the  schools  and  Universities  ;  a  place  from  which  it 
has  recently  been  excluded  to  make  room  for  a  competitor  of 
very  questionable  pretensions.  In  1 765  he  was  elected  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Royal  Society  of  Goettingen,  and  was  sooit  after  involv- 
ed in  a  warm  controversy  with  the  uneasy  and  turbulent  WAR- 
BURTON.  This  haughty  prelate  for  once  met  with  his  match ; 
and  he  was  so  completely  humbled  by  the  cutting  sarcasm  and 
overpowering  eloquence  of  LOWTH,  that  he  was  glad  to  retire 
from  the  field  in  the  (to  him)  new  character  of  a  beaten  champion. 
In  1766  DR.  LOWTH  was  made  Bishop  of  St.  Davids,  and  was 
soon  after  transferred  to  the  See  of  Oxford,  which  he  retained 
till  1777,  when  he  succeeded  DR.  TERRICK  in  the  Bishopric  of 
London.  The  next  year  he  published  his  Translation  of  ISAIAH, 
with  a  Preliminary  Dissertation  and  Notes  ;  a  noble  work,  and  in 
most  respects  worthy  the  mature  reflections  of  the  author  of  the 
Lectures  on  Hebrew  Poetry,  but  disfigured  by  many  verbal 
criticisms,  which  can  neither  be  valued,  nor  scarcely  respected. 


PREFACE.  VII 


at  the  present  day.  In  1781  he  was  engaged  in  a  law-suit  with 
LEWIS  DISNEY  FFYTCHE,  ESQ.,  concerning  the  legality  of  gener- 
al bonds  of  resignation,  which  the  courts  decided  against  the 
Bishop,  though  that  decision  was  afterwards  reversed  in  the 
House  of  Lords  by  a  majority  of  one  vote.  In  1783  he  was  fix- 
ed upon  to  succeed  DR.  CORNWALLIS  in  the  Archbishopric  of 
Canterbury  ;  but  his  advanced  age  and  increasing  infirmities  in- 
duced him  to  decline  that  distinguished  honour.  In  the  year 
1787,  after  a  most  painful  illness,  in  which  he  suffered  from  the 
tortures  of  the  stone,  and  from  a  paralysis  of  the  throat,  that  pre- 
vented his  taking  any  nourishment  but  a  little  liquid,  during  the 
last  fourteen  days  of  his  life,  he  died  of  hunger,  in  distressing  con- 
vulsions, on  the  third  day  of  November,  in  the  seventy-seventh 
year  of  his  age.  During  the  whole  of  this  dreadful  scene  of  suf- 
fering, he  exhibited  the  firmness  of  a  man  and  the  patient  resigna- 
tion of  a  Christian.  He  left  one  son  and  one  daughter,  to  whom 
he  bequeathed  a  fortune  of  £40,000.  He  had  suffered  severe 
afflictions  in  his  family.  His  eldest  son,  who  gave  the  most  flat- 
tering promise  of  future  eminence,  was  hurried  to  an  untimely 
grave ;  his  eldest  daughter,  of  whom  he  was  passionately  fond, 
died  in  1768,  at  the  age  of  14  ;  and  in  1783  his  second  daughter, 
as  she  was  presiding  at  the  tea-table,  suddenly  expired  before  her 
father's  eyes.  The  following  exquisitely  beautiful  epitaph, 
which  he  wrote  for  the  tomb-stone  of  his  first  and  favourite  daugh- 
ter, does  equal  honour  to  his  feelings  as  a  parent  and  his  taste  as 
a  scholar. 

"  Care,  vale,  ingenio  preestans,  pietate,  pudore, 

"  Et  plusquam  natee  nomine  cara,  vale. 
"  Cara  Maria,  vale.     At  veniet  felicius  aevum 

"  Quando  iterum  tecum,  sim  modo  dignus,  ero. 
"  Cara,  redi,  Iceta  turn  dicam  voce  paternus, 

"  Eja,  age  in  amplexus,  cara  Maria,  redi." 

Of  the  character  of  Bishop  LOWTH'S  mind,  an  account  has 
already  been  given  ;  and  his  writings  afford  a  sufficient  exhibition 
of  what  he  was  as  an  intellectual  man.  His  manners  were  those 
of  a  Christian  gentleman  ;  he  was  naturally  of  a  religious  and  be- 
nevolent disposition  ;  his  temperament  was  warm  and  rather  in- 
clined to  melancholy.  His  feelings  were  quick  and  strong  ;  but 


PREFACE. 


he  had  learned  the  art  of  self-government :  conscious  of  his  own 
powers,  his  decisions  were  prompt  and  his  conduct  determined  ; 
but  without  arrogance  or  obstinacy.  In  all  the  various  offices 
which  he  was  called  to  fill,  he  was  scrupulously  faithful  and  con- 
scientious in  the  discharge  of  his  duty  ;  and  in  him  were  united 
strength  of  intellect,  depth  of  erudition,  refinement  of  taste,  firm- 
ness of  character,  modesty,  gentleness,  and  piety. 

in  review  of  the  many  excellencies  of  DR.  LOWTH,  and  be- 
fore I  proceed  to  point  out  the  deficiencies  of  his  works,  I  feel 
constrained  to  present  the  reader  with  the  concluding  paragraph 
of  EICHHORN'S  critique  on  his  literary  merits.  "  Meanwhile,  let 
no  unfriendly  spirit  henceforth  persecute  the  shade  of  this  noble 
Briton  ;  and  if  we  detect  deficiences  in  his  works  or  find  them 
below  the  knowledge  of  our  times,  let  no  man  forget  what  he 
was  for  his  own  age  ;  how  beneficial  was  his  influence  upon  his 
contemporaries  :  that  we  have  become  vvhat  we  are,  in  part  at 
least,  by  his  aid  ;  and  that  he  has  helped  us  forward  many  steps 
by  his  investigations  and  masterly  example.  Arid  now,  thou  en- 
lightened spirit,  raised  above  all  worldly  imperfections,  thou 
thyself  seest  far  better  than  thine  earthly  brethren,  how  near  thou 
earnest  to  the  goal  towards  which  thou  didst  aim,  and  wilt  ap- 
prove the  good  will  of  the  foreigner  unknown  to  thee  in  life,  who 
has  endeavoured  to  speak  impartially  of  thy  merits.  If  he  has 
not  done  them  justice,  pardon  the  weakness  to  which  thou  art  now 
superior,  and  smile  propitiously  on  the  offering  of  gratitude  which 
he  has  presented  thee." 

The  deficiencies  of  LOWTH  are  principally  owing  to  a  want 
of  extensive  acquaintance  with  Oriental  literature.  He  was  per- 
fectly familiar  with  the  whole  range  of  classical  learning,  and 
wrote  the  Latin  language  with  the  ease  and  elegance  of  an  ora- 
tor and  poet  of  the  Augustan  age  ;  but  the  Hebrew  he  had  learn- 
ed only  by  means  of  Lexicographers  and  a  diligent  study  of  the 
Old  Testament,  without  any  knowledge  of  the  kindred  dialects, 
and  but  imperfectly  acquainted  with  the  peculiarities  of  the  Orien- 
tal world.  Hence,  though  he  always  strikes  out  a  magnificent  out- 
line,  he  frequently  falters  while  attempting  to  supply  the  details  ; 
arid  instead  of  pointing  at  once  to  the  particular  trait  in  Oriental 


PREFACE.  IX 


character  or  manners,  which  would  set  the  full  meaning  of  a  pas- 
sage before  our  eyes,  he  is  hunting  for  a  various  reading  by  help 
of  which  to  escape  from  difficulty,  or  he  is  finding  fault  with  the 
Masorites  and  changing  the  text  on  his  own  authority.  Hence, 
too,  his  very  excellencies  were  in  some  respects  a  disadvantage ; 
for  his  familiarity  with  the  Classics  led  him  to  labour  to  conform 
the  writings  of  the  Hebrews  too  much  to  their  rules,  and  the  el- 
oquence of  his  Latin  style  not  unfrequently  tempted  him  to  con- 
ceal real  ignorance  under  the  flowing  drapery  of  a  well-turned 
sentence. 

Happily  for  the  cause  of  sacred  learning,  LOWTH  found  in 
Germany  an  Editor  capable  of  appreciating  his  merits  and  admi- 
rably qualified  to  supply  his  defects.  This  was  the  celebrated 
JOHN  DAVID  MICHAELIS  ;  who  was  born  at  Halle  in  the  year 
1717,  and  after  having  acquired  considerable  reputation  as  a 
scholar  and  teacher,  was  invited  by  the  Hanoverian  minister 
MUENCHHAUSEN  to  the  newly-founded  University  of  Goettingen 
in  1745,  where  in  1750  he  was  made  Professor  of  Philosophy,  a 
post  which  he  retained  till  his  death  in  1791.  His  early  educa- 
tion had  been  rather  loose  and  irregular,  and  he  scarcely  knew 
towards  what  point  to  direct  his  attention ;  but  possessing  an  in- 
quisitive mind  and  a  disposition  of  singular  vivacity,  he  made 
rapid  progress  in  whatever  he  undertook.  His  father,  CHRISTIAN 
BENEDICT  MICHAELIS,  Professor  of  Theology  and  the  Oriental 
Languages  at  Halle,  was  considerably  distinguished  as  an  Orien- 
talist, and  had  published  a  Syriac  Grammar.  Such  was  his  zeal 
for  the  progress  of  his  favourite  studies,  that  on  his  death-bed 
he  charged  his  son  JOHN  DAVID  to  publish  an  edition  of  the  Syri- 
ac Lexicon  from  CASTELL'S  Heptaglott,  as  a  companion  to  his 
Syriac  Grammar ;  which  he  had  intended  to  do  himself  had  his 
life  been  spared.  The  son  has  not  informed  us  what  influence 
this  circumstanpe  had  on  his  subsequent  studies  ;  but  he  hon- 
estly confesses  that  he  forgot  to  comply  with  his  father's  dying 
request  till  after  he  was  seventy  years  old. 

In  1741  the  young  MICHAELIS  made  a  visit  to  England  ;  and 
while  at  Oxford  he  was  invited  by  a  friend  to  attend  the  public 
exercises  of  the  University,  when  he  chanced  to  hear  LOWTH 
B 


PREFACE. 


read  his  second  Lecture  on  the  Sacred  Poetry  of  the  Hebrews. 
With  the  countenance,  the  manners,  and  the  whole  appearance 
of  the  Lecturer,  he  was  highly  delighted,  and  earnestly  desired  to 
form  a  personal  acquaintance  with  him,  but  was  unable  to  obtain 
an  introduction. 

The  predilections  of  MICHAELIS  were  in  favour  of  the  study 
of  history  ;  but  when  MUENCHHAUSEN  called  him  to  Goettingen, 
he  charged  him  to  bend  all  his  efforts  to  reform  the  theology  of 
Germany,  and  give  it  a  higher  and  more  intellectual  cast.  He 
engaged  in  the  work  with  his  characteristic  zeal  and  energy  ;  and 
the  numberless  labours  of  more  than  half  a  century  bear  ample 
testimony  to  his  iron  diligence  and  unyielding  independence,  to 
the  acuteness  and  vivacity  of  his  mind,  and  the  good-humoured 
sincerity  of  his  heart.  As  the  best  means  of  reforming  theology, 
he  exerted  all  his  powers  to  illustrate  the  Bible ;  he  shrunk  from 
no  difficulties  and  spared  no  pains  to  obtain  an  intimate  acquain- 
tance with  the  languages,  customs,  and  history  of  the  Oriental 
nations ;  he  started  after  every  hint  that  would  give  him  the  least 
aid  in  his  investigations,  and  never  gave  over  his  pursuit  till  he 
had  attained  his  object.  Of  his  zeal  and  ability  in  the  pursuit  of 
Oriental  literature,  the  scientific  expedition  to  the  East,  which 
was  set  forward  by  the  king  of  Denmark  at  his  request  and  under 
his  direction,  and  which  resulted  in  enriching  the  learned  world 
with  the  Travels  of  NIEBUHR,  is  a  most  honourable  and  lasting 
testimonial. 

Such  a  man  was  just  adapted  to  feel  the  worth  and  supply 
the  defects  of  LOWTH  ;  and  soon  after  the  Lectures  on  Hebrew 
Poetry  were  published  in  England,  MICHAELIS  began  to  prepare 
an  edition  in  Germany  with  copious  notes,  the  first  volume  of 
which  was  published  at  Goettingen  in  1758,  and  the  second  in 
1761.  These  notes  contain  a  rich  treasure  of  Oriental  learning, 
and  are  interspersed  with  admirable  hints  in  regard  to  the  gener- 
al principles  of  interpreting  the  Sacred  Writings,  of  which  suc- 
ceeding commentators  have  availed  themselves  ;  and  the  germ  of 
not  a  few  of  the  splendid  works  which  have  given  Germany  so 
much  reputation  within  the  last  half  century,  may  be  traced  to 
these  remarks  of  MICHAELIS.  He  is  deservedly  styled  the  Patri- 


PREFACE. 


arch  of  Sacred  Literature  in  Germany,  for  no  man  has  ever  ac- 
complished so  much  for  the  cause  in  that  country,  and  under  so 
great  disadvantages.  Still,  as  a  writer  he  is  not  free  from  faults. 
His  style  is  discursive  and  loose,  and  sometimes  degenerates  to 
downright  prattle ;  with  all  his  learning  and  perspicacity  he  is 
sadly  deficient  in  taste,  and  with  all  his  love  of  truth  he  frequent- 
ly runs  wild  in  the  regions  of  conjecture.  Sometimes  he  propo- 
ses an  interpretation  so  tasteless  and  strange,  that  we  can  scarcely 
believe  him  serious  ;  and  sometimes  he  evolves  a  fancy  so  un- 
couth and  ludicrous,  that  we  are  surprised  into  a  laugh  :  and  for 
these,  his  natural  offspring,  he  always  manifests  a  most  tender  and 
devoted  affection. 

For  several  years  the  learned  world  appear  to  have  remain- 
ed satisfied  with  the  labours  of  LOWTH  and  MICHAELIS,  and  but 
little  more  was  done  in  this  branch  of  Sacred  Literature  till  the 
time  of  JOHN  GODFREY  HERDER.  He  was  born  at  Morungen 
in  Prussia  in  the  year  1741.  The  poverty  of  his  parents  and  the 
extreme  delicacy  of  his  own  health  obstructed  his  early  educa- 
tion, though  at  one  time  he  attended  the  Lectures  of  the  cele- 
brated KANT  and  other  distinguished  professors ;  and  he  was  the 
chosen  companion  and  counsellor  of  the  poet  GOETHE.  After 
passing  through  various  vicissitudes,  not  a  little  vexatious  and  ir- 
ritating to  the  sensibilities  of  a  man  of  genius,  he  was  appointed 
Superintendent  of  Ecclesiastical  affairs  in  the  Dutchy  of  Saxe- 
Weimar,  an  employment  which  he  held  till  his  death  in  1803. 

The  astonishing  variety  and  uniform  success  of  the  literary 
efforts  of  HERDER,  are  almost  without  example.  To  the  genius 
of  a  poet  and  the  intellectual  refinement  of  an  accomplished 
scholar,  he  added  the  persevering  and  unremitted  industry  of  a 
German  GELEHRTE.  His  sensibilities  were  painfully  acute  ;  his 
whole  soul  was  taste ;  and  he  seemed  always  to  write  from  in- 
stinct rather  than  reflection.  The  present  object  of  thought, 
whatever  it  might  be,  became  so  completely  a  part  of  his  own 
mind,  that  his  historical  descriptions  have  all  the  vivacity  and 
charm  of  a  picture  of  the  fancy  :  and  he  enters  so  readily  and 
entirely  into  all  the  thoughts  and  feelings  of  the  ancient  Oriental 
nations,  that,  while  reading  his  writings,  we  seem  to  be  convers- 


XII  PREFACE. 


ing  with  a  disembodied  spirit,  who  has  left  his  seat  in  Paradise  for 
the  very  purpose  of  informing  us  how  men  thought  and  felt  in 
those  by-gone  days  when  he  dwelt  on  earth.  The  writings  to 
which  I  here  particularly  refer,  are  the  first  part  of  his  Letters  on 
the  Study  of  Theology,  and  his  Spirit  of  Hebrew  Poetry  ;  for 
his  other  literary  labours,  numerous  and  admirable  as  they  are, 
have  liitle  concern  with  the  subject  of  the  present  work. 

Thus  have  I  attempted  to  give  a  brief  sketch  of  the  three 
great  masters  of  that  department  of  literature  to  which  the  fol- 
lowing pages  are  devoted.  Three  characters  more  entirely  dis- 
similar it  would  be  difficult  to  find  ;  and  each  seems  admirably 
fitted  to  correct  the  imperfections  of  the  others.  If  you  would 
ascertain  the  great  principles  on  which  you  must  judge  of  the 
Hebrew  poetry,  and  become  acquainted  with  its  characteristic 
features,  study  LOWTH  ;  if  you  desire  to  know  more  of  the  pre- 
cise idea  which  the  Hebrew  poets  intend  to  express,  and  to  trace 
with  philological  accuracy  the  sources  of  their  language  and  im- 
agery, follow  the  criticisms  of  MICHAF.LIS;  but  if  you  would  lay 
aside  the  philosopher  and  the  critic,  and  give  yourself  up  to  intel- 
lectual enjoyment,  if  you  would  have  the  same  sensations  and  the 
same  thoughts,  while  chanting  the  Hebrew  poetry,  which  the  an- 
cient Hebrews  themselves  had,  catch  the  tuneful  notes  of  HERDER. 

Other  distinguished  scholars,  as  NACHTIGALL,  u  STI,  and  DE 
WETTE,  have  laboured  successfully  in  this  branch  of  study,  but 
we  have  not  time  here  to  give  them  a  particular  notice. 

In  the  year  1787  MR.  GREGORY  published  an  English  trans- 
lation of  the  Lectures  on  Hebrew  Poetry.  It  was  impossible  to 
do  complete  justice,  in  a  translation,  to  the  sonorous,  chaste,  and 
elegant  Latin  style  of  LOWTH  ;  but  MR.  GREGORY  has  accomplish- 
ed all  that  could  reasonably  be  expected.  Sometimes,  indeed, 
the  dignified  conciseness  and  expressive  energy  of  the  Latin  be- 
comes weakly  diffuse  and  almost  bombastic  in  the  English ;  but 
on  the  whole  the  translation  is  faithful,  and  executed  in  a  style  of 
remarkable  neatness  and  purity.  It  was  a  great  error  of  the  trans- 
lator, and  one  into  which  he  was  led,  it  would  seem,  by  the 
judgement  of  others  rather  than  his  own,  to  substitute  English 
translations  of  Scripture,  drawn  from  various  sources  and  of  very 


PREFACE.  X11I 


unequal  merit,  for  the  inimitable  Latin  versions  of  LOWTH. 
MR.  GREGORY  translated  some  of  the  notes  of  MICHAELIS,  and 
these  he  has  sometimes  essentially  improved ;  for  the  diffuse  and 
rather  awkward  Latin  of  the  German  Professor  is  generally  ren- 
dered into  very  concise  and  graceful  English.  He  also  added 
to  his  edition  some  notes  of  his  own  and  some  by  his  friends,  all 
of  them  well  meant  and  several  of  them  well  written. 

In  the  year  1815,  DR.  E.  F.  C.  ROSENMUELLER,  Professor 
of  the  Oriental  Languages  at  Leipsic,  the  most  laborious,  and  in 
some  respects  the  most  valuable  Scriptural  Commentator  of  the 
present  day,  published  an  edition  of  LOWTH  with  additional  notes, 
in  which  he  designed  to  correct  the  errors  and  supply  the  defects 
of  MICHAELIS.  The  long  experience  and  extensive  attainments 
of  ROSENMUELLER  in  this  department  of  study,  enabled  him  to 
make  many  very  valuable  additions. 

In  preparing  the  present  edition  for  the  press,  the  Editor  has 
done  all  in  his  power  to  adapt  it  to  the  existing  state  of  biblical 
learning,  and  make  it  as  useful  as  possible  to  the  American  schol- 
ar. For  this  purpose  the  translation  of  GREGORY  has  been  revis- 
ed throughout,  and  in  many  places  corrected  ;  and  the  most 
valuable  notes  appended  to  his  edition,  have  been  selected  for 
this,  some  of  them  entire  and  some  abridged.  The  Editor 
has  examined  all  the  most  important  works  which  have  appeared 
on  the  subject  since  the  time  of  MICHAELIS,  and  extracted  from 
them  whatever  seemed  necessary  to  complete  the  view  of  the  va- 
rious subjects  introduced,  and  to  correct  the  errors  of  preceding 
writers.  In  this  way  all  the  notes  which  bear  the  name  of  ROSEN- 
MUELLER,  SIR  WILLIAM  JONES,  HERDER,  EICHHORN,  GESENIUS, 
DE\\TETTE,  RAW,  HOLLMANN,  and  some  others,  were  selected  ex- 
pressly for  this  edition.  He  has  also  every  where  referred  to  the 
most  recent  sources  of  information,  that  the  student  who  wishes  to 
pursue  the  investigation  of  any  particular  point,  may  know  where  to 
find  the  requisite  aid  ;  and  he  has  written  many  new  notes,  which 
are  distinguished  from  the  others  by  the  signature  S.  Whatev- 
er may  be  thought,  of  the  value  or  importance  of  these  original 
notes,  they  have  cost  not  a  little  labour  and  study.  For  the  sake 
of  convenient  reference,  the  notes  are  placed  by  themselves  and 


PREFACE. 


each  of  them  furnished  with  an  appropriate  title.  Doubtless  there 
are  deficiences,  and  probably  there  are  errors,  in  this  edition  ;  but 
these  I  hope  are  neither  of  such  a  nature  nor  of  so  frequent  occur- 
rence, as  essentially  to  diminish  the  usefulness  of  the  work. 

I  am  quite  certain  that  every  scholar  will  thank  me  for  en- 
riching this  edition  with  the  classical  and  elegant  Latin  transla- 
tions of  LOWTH.  As  specimens  of  this  species  of  composition, 
they  seem  to  me  unequalled  for  chasteness,  simplicity,  expres- 
siveness, and  beauty.  Possibly  I  may  incur  the  displeasure  of 
some  for  having  admitted  so  much  of  Latin  into  the  notes.  I 
have  never  inserted  a  Latin  note  where  I  did  not  suppose  the  orig- 
inal to  be  far  more  valuable  than  any  translation  that  could  pos- 
sibly be  made.  This  is  certainly  the  case  with  all  the  direct  ver- 
sions of  Scripture  (which  make  up  a  large  part  of  the  Latin  notes), 
for  a  translation  of  a  translation  is  of  all  things  the  most  insipid 
and  unmeaning.  The  same  principle  is  applicable  to  all  those 
notes  which  develope  some  characteristic  intellectual  peculiarity 
of  the  author  ;  for  those  delicate  shapings  and  indefinable  colours 
which  every  original  writer  gives  to  his  own  thoughts  in  his  own 
language,  are  unavoidably  lost  in  a  translation.  Most  of  the  Lat- 
in notes  of  MICHAELIS  owe  their  insertion  to  this  circumstance. 
I  wished  to  give  the  American  scholar  an  opportunity  to  become 
acquainted  with  that  eminent  critic  as  he  really  is ;  with  his  own 
loose,  careless  garb,  and  the  good-natured  face,  in  which  he  always 
appears  when  at  home.  The  notes  of  ROSENMUELLER  are  so  pure 
in  their  style  and  so  perspicuous  in  their  structure,  and  his  Latin 
writings  are  coming  into  such  general  use  with  the  theologians  of 
our  country,  that  I  thought  it  would  be  a  useless  and  a  degrading 
labour  to  change  their  original  form  ;  and  the  simple,  charming, 
mellifluent  Latin  of  SIR  WILLIAM  JONES,  every  man  capable  of 
reading  it,  would  deem  it  little  less  than  sacrilege  to  stifle  by 
translation.  Wherever  the  Latin  of  a  philologian  is  embarrassed 
in  its  structure  or  encumbered  by  foreign  idioms,  I  am  willing  to 
translate  it ;  but  every  theological  student  ought  to  have  skill  and 
practice  enough  to  read  a  simple  and  pure  Latin  style  with  ease 
and  pleasure,  and  if  the  publication  of  the  present  work  shall 
contribute  in  any  degree  to  the  accomplishment  of  so  desirable  a 


PREFACE.  XV 


result,  one  ardent  wish  of  my  heart  will  be  gratified.  Many  of 
the  most  valuable  works  on  Sacred  Literature,  to  which  every 
student  ought  to  have  ready  access,  are  written  in  Latin  ;  and 
Scriptural  translations  into  that  language,  which  has  never  been 
degraded  in  our  minds  by  being  made  the  vehicle  of  popular  in- 
tercourse, are  free  from  all  vulgar  associations,  and  can  be  read 
with  peculiar  pleasure.  On  this  point  I  would  say  with  SIR  WIL- 
LIAM JONES  :  Sermonis  Latini  suavitatem  non  sentimus,  ut  Ro- 
mani  ;  sed  ita  tamen  sentimus,  ut  delectemur :  cur  ideo,  cum  tan- 
tae  sint  in  vita  molestiae,  una  hac  delectatione  careamus  ? 

On  the  importance  of  the  subject  of  the  following  pages  I  trust 
I  need  say  but  little.  The  principles  here  discussed  are  radical- 
ly connected  with  the  interpretation  of  the  Word  of  God.  The 
greater  part  of  the  Old  Testament  is  poetry,  and  poetry  too  of  a 
very  peculiar  and  most  impassioned  kind  ;  and  by  rules  applica- 
ble only  to  poetical  language,  ought  this  poetry  to  be  interpreted. 
Yet  many  pay  very  little  regard  to  this  important  peculiarity ; 
they  make  scarcely  any  distinction  between  the  poetic  and  pro- 
saic portions  of  the  Bible,  and  employ  quotations  from  both  as  if 
they  had  been  written  with  the  closest  attention  to  metaphysical 
precision,  and  in  view  of  all  the  subtilties  of  modern  philosophy. 
To  what  strange  conclusions  should  we  be  led,  were  we  to  inter- 
pret MILTON'S  Paradise  Lost  in  the  same  spirit  and  by  the  same 
rules  with  which  we  should  read  President  EDWARDS  on  the 
Freedom  of  the  Will**  To  conclusions  scarcely  less  monstrous 
have  some  theological  writers  been  betrayed  by  want  of  attention 
to  the  poetical  costume  of  the  Bible.  Such  errors  give  learned 
infidels  their  only  occasion  of  reviling,  and  deter  men  of  taste 
from  the  study  of  the  Scriptures.  Let  the  Bible  be  freed  from 
the  mistaken  glosses  by  which  its  beauties  have  been  obscured, 
the  mouths  of  infidels  will  be  stopped,  and  men  of  taste  will  be 
allured  to  a  diligent  and  repeated  perusal  of  the  sacred  pages. 

The  treasures  of  the  Bible  are  not  yet  exhausted,  and  enough 
still  remains  to  be  discovered  to  reward  the  labours  of  the  most 
arduous  investigation.  The  use  which  our  older  divines  have 
generally  made  of  the  Scriptures,  is  almost  entirely  theological. 
In  them  they  sought  only  theological  sentiments  ;  and  to  the  re- 


XVI  PREFACE. 


mainder  of  their  contents,  to  their  high  antiquity,  to  their  deep  in- 
terest as  containing  the  record  of  the  very  first  developernent  of 
the  human  mind,  to  the  striking  peculiarities  of  their  history, 
structure,  and  language,  they  gave  little  attention.  They  read  the 
Bible,  and  commented  upon  it,  very  much  as  if  it  were  a  modern 
book,  written  by  some  members  of  their  own 'communion.  Yet 
the  great  truths  of  religion  are  engraved  so  plainly  on  its  pages, 
that  the  strong  good  sense  of  our  old  divines  could  not  fail  to  per- 
ceive them.  In  their  theological  writings,  the  leading  doctrines 
of  the  Scriptures  are  clearly  stated  and  eloquently  defended,  and 
oftentimes  admirably  elucidated.  Hence,  though  the  great  truths 
of  the  Bible  have  long  been  familiar  to  the  student  of  English 
theology,  the  literature  of  the  Bible  is  still,  to  a  great  extent,  en- 
veloped in  darkness.  We  are  enriched  by  the  gold,  but  the  de- 
lightful region  in  which  the  mines  are  situated,  is  still  unexplored  ; 
and  other  mines  yet  remain  to  be  opened,  and  still  richer  treas- 
ures to  be  discovered. 

Let  no  one,  however,  suppose  that  he  can  make  any  advanc- 
es in  this  department  of  literature  without  long  and  thorough 
study.  The  first  and  indispensable  requisite  is  a  perfect  famili- 
arity with  the  Hebrew  language.  To  attempt  to  investigate  the 
literary  beauties  of  the  Bible  by  means  of  translations,  is  like  at- 
tempting to  study  the  great  masters  of  the  art  of  painting  by  means 
of  wood  cuts.  To  pretend  to  do  it  with  a  halting,  imperfect 
knowledge  of  the  language,  is  like  pretending  to  an  acquaintance 
with  the  same  great  masters  by  examining  the  wrong  side  of 
their  canvass.  Here  a  student  must  labour  and  be  a  student  in 
reality.  Oriental  languages,  feelings,  and  modes  of  thought,  are 
not  acquired  in  a  moment.  The  Oriental  Muses  must  be  wooed 
in  order  to  be  won.  The  student  must  read  much,  and  think 
closely,  and  habituate  himself  to  patient  and  mature  reflection  ; 
and  perhaps  have  but  little  to  show  after  all  his  toil.  But  that 
little  is  pure  gold,  and  he  knows  its  value,  and  in  the  silent  joy  of 
his  heart,  blesses  God  for  the  possession.  To  contribute  in 
the  smallest  degree  towards  awakening  such  a  spirit  and  exciting 
to  such  effort  in  a  cause  so  noble,  is  a  privilege  for  which  any 
mortal  man  ought  to  be  grateful. 


PREFACE.  XVII 


Considerations  such  as  these  have  induced  me  to  undertake  the 
task  of  preparing  for  the  press  a  new  edition  of  LOWTH'S  Lectures, 
much  enlarged,  and,  as  I  would  hope,  considerably  improved, 
and  properly  adapted  to  the  present  state  of  Sacred  Literature  in 
our  country.  To  the  Class  of  theological  students,  by  whose  re- 
quest I  commenced  the  work,  and  to  Professor  STUART,  by  whose 
advice  I  have  been  aided  in  the  execution  of  it,  I  now  cheerfully 
commit  the  result  of  my  labours. 

CALVIN  E.  STOWE. 

Theological  Seminary, 

Andover,  Oct.  1, 1829. 


CONTENTS. 

LECTURE  I. 

Tftie  uses  and  design  of  Poetry ,     .      9 

LECTURE  II. 

The  design  and  arrangement  of  these  Lectures 25 

LECTURE  III. 
Hebrew  Poetry  is  Metrical 31    * 

LECTURE  IV. 

origin,  use,  and  characteristics  of  the  Parabolic,  and  also  of  > 

the  Sententious  style        37    *A 

LECTURE  V. 
v_The  Figurative  style  and  its  Divisions 45 

LECTURE  VI. 
v — ^Poetic  imagery  from  the  objects  of  Nature 51     ^/ 

LECTURE  VII. 

Poetic  imagery  from  Common  Life 58 

LECTURE  VIII. 

Poetic  imagery  from  Sacred  Topics 66 

LECTURE  IX. 
Poetic  imagery  from  the  Sacred  History .     73 

LECTURE  X. 

.    The  Allegory. , 81 


XX  CONTENTS. 


LECTURE  XI. 

'  &-  The  Mystical  Allegory 88 

LECTURE  XII. 

The  Comparison 94 

LECTURE  XIII. 

^.X  The  Prosopopoeia,  or  Personification     . 104 

LECTURE  XIV. 

The  Sublime  in  general,  and  Sublimity  of  Expression  in  par- 
ticular       Ill 

LECTURE  XV. 
Sublimity  of  Expression 120 

LECTURE  XVI. 
iX  Sublimity  of  Sentiment .     .  129 

LECTURE  XVII. 
The  Sublime  of  Passion .  137 

LECTURE  XVIII. 

The  writings  of  the  Prophets  are  in  general  Poetical  .     .     .     .145 

LECTURE  XIX. 

V  The  Prophetic  Poetry  is  Sententious 154 

LECTURE  XX. 

The  general  Characteristics  of  the  Prophetic  Poetry    .     .     .     .  167 

LECTURE  XXI. 

The  peculiar  Character  of  each  of  the  Prophets 176 

LECTURE  XXII. 

-       The  Nature  and  Origin  of  the  Hebrew  Elegy  ;  and  of  the  La- 
mentations of  Jeremiah    .  184 


CONTENTS.  XXI 


LECTURE  XXIII. 

The  remaining  Elegies  of  the  Hebrews •     .  19*2        f 

LECTURE  XXIV. 

The  Proverbs,  or  Didactic  Poetry  of  the  Hebrews     ....  200  l 

LECTURE  XXV. 

i      The  Hebrew  Ode  in  general ;  and  first  of  that  class,  the  char- 
acteristics of  which  are  sweetness  and  elegance     ....  210 

LECTURE  XXVI. 

The  intermediate  or  mixed  style  of  the  Hebrew  Ode       .     .     .  217        V 

LECTURE  XXVII. 

The  sublime  style  of  the  Hebrew  Ode 225         ¥~ 

LECTURE  XXVIII. 

The  same  subject  continued 232 

LECTURE  XXIX. 

The  Idyllium  of  the  Hebrews 238 

LECTURE  XXX. 

The  Song  of  Solomon  not  a  regular  Drama     .     .     .     .     .     .  246 

LECTURE  XXXI. 

The  subject  and  style  of  Solomon's  Song 254 

LECTURE  XXXII. 

The  Poem  of  Job . .     .     .     .  263 

LECTURE  XXXIII. 

The  Poem  of  Job  not  a  perfect  Drama ,     .  273 

LECTURE  XXXIV. 

The  manners,  sentiments,  and  style  of  the  Poem  of  Job     .     .  282    ._., 

A  Confutation  of  Bishop  Hare's  System  of  Hebrew  Metre     .     .  294 


CONTENTS  OF  THE  NOTES. 


LECT.  I. 


Page. 


Time  of  commencing  these  Lec- 
tures   303 

Utility  the  ultimate  object  of  po- 
etry .  . 303 

Authority  of  Virgil's  Georgics  304 
Poetry,  philosophy,  and  history  304 
Translation  of  the  ode  of  Callis- 

tratus 305 

Use  of  poetry  to  an  orator  .  .  306 
Original  design  of  poetry  .  .  .  307 

LECT.  II. 

The  Bible  a  proper  subject  of 
criticism 309 

Ancient  opinion  respecting  the 
divine  origin  of  poetry  .  .  .  310 

LECT.  III. 
Poetic  diction   of  the  Hebrews     312 

Hebrew  dialects 316 

Versification .316 

Hebrew  pronunciation  &  quantity  320 

Meaning  of  -ntoTW 322 

Coincidence  of  Verses  and  sen- 
tences   323 

Hebrew  and  Arabic  poetry     .     .  323 

LECT.  IV. 

Meaning    of  Vaw    and   TTPrt       324 
Union  of  poetry,  music  and  danc- 
ing among  the   ancients     .     .  326 
Poets  anciently  denominated  sag- 
es  and  prophets 326 

Ancient  uses  of  poetry  ....  327 
Twofold  meaning  of  Vwtt   ...  31 
Ancient  historical  poems'  .     .     •  330 

LECT.  V. 

Rhetorical   figures 334 

Sources  of  poetic  imagery     .     .  336 

LECT.  VI. 

Boldness  of  Oriental  imagery  336 
Imagery  borrowed  from  plants 

and  the  heavenly  bodies  .  .  339 

Isaiah  xxx vii.  24 340 

Psalm  Ixviii.  31  ...  .  .  340 
Poetic  imagery  from  the  objects 

of  nature '    .     .     .  342 

LECT.  VII. 

Imagery  derived  from  sepulchres  345 
Sbeol  and  its  ^'habitants  .  .  347 
Imagery  from  the  vices  of  men  350 


LECT.  VIII. 


Page. 


Imagery  derived  from  the  priest- 
hood              .     .  351 

Psalm  cxxxix.  15 352 

Psalm  civ.  2—5     .     .     .     .  •  .     .352 
Imagery  from  popular  belief  .     .  354 
of  trans 


Inadequacy 


inflations 


354 


LECT.  IX. 

Isaiah  li.  15, 16 357 

Psalm  xi.  6 358 

Meaning  of  C^ns 359 

Imagery  from   tfte  overthrow  of 
Sodom  and  Gomorrah     .     .     .  359 

Psalmxviii.8— 16 361 

Imagery  from  sacred   history     .  361 
Imagery  from  poetic  fable     .     .  362 

LECT.  X. 

Psalm  ex.  3 365 

Ecclesiastes  xii.  2 — 6     ....  366 
Isaiah  xxviii.  23—29     .     .     .     .367 

Prophetic  parables 368 

Fables  of  Jotham  and  Nathan     .  368 
Psalm  Ixxx.  16—18 369 

LECT.  XI. 

Mystical  allegory 369 

Figurative  sense  obscured  by  the 

literal       .     .     , 370 

Psalm  ii ,     .     ,  371 

Mystical  poetry  of  the  East     .     .  371 

LECT.  XII. 

Isaiah  xvii.  12,  13 376 

Isaiah  Iv.  10, 11 377 

Psalm  Ixxxiii.  13—15     .     .     .     .378 
Job  vi.  17 378 

LECT.  XIII. 

Personification 3' 

Isaiah   xlvii.    1 379 

Judges  v.  29.   30 380 

Triumphal  odes  of  the  Hebrews  .  380 

LECT.  XIV. 

Job  iii.  3 383 

Job  and  Jeremiah  compared    .     .  383 

LECT.  XV. 

Paronomasia 384 

Use  of  tenses  in  Hebrew    .     ,     •  384 


CONTENTS  OF  THE  NOTES. 


XXIII 


LECT.  XVI. 


Isaiah  xl.  12     .     .     . 
Psalm  cxxxix.  7—10 


Pa 


age. 
385 
385 


LECT.  XVII. 

Pathos  of  the  Scriptures     .     .     .  387 
Isaiah  Ixiii.  6 387 


LECT.  XVIII. 

Jewish  opinions  on  Hebrew  poe- 
try       388 

Schools  of  the  prophets     .     .     .  389 
Meaning  of  trim     .    .  " .     .    .    .  390 

LECT  XIX. 

Singing  by  alternate  choirs     .     .  390 

Hosea  xi.  9 395 

Use  of  parallelism  in  interpreta- 
tion          .     .  395 


LECT.  XX. 

Jewish  notions  of  prophecy     .     .  395 
Style  of  Daniel  unpoetical     .     .  396 

Design  of  prophecy 397 

Isaiah  xxxiv.  xxxv 397 


LECT.  XXI. 

Character  of  Jeremiah  .  .  .  .  398 
Character  of  Ezekiel  ....  399 
Character  of  Habakkuk  .  .  .401 
Opinion  of  the  Greeks  on  their 

prophetic  poetry 401 

Fourth  Eclogue  of  Virgil     .     .     .402 

LECT.  XXII. 

Alphabetic  poems  of  the  He- 
brews   405 

Subject  of  the  Lamentations  of 
Jeremiah 405 

LECT.  XXIII. 

Psalm  xlii 406 

Book  of  Jasher 408 

Meaning  of  ho|5.  2  Sam.  i.  18,    .  410 

LECT.  XXIV. 

Ecclesiastes  xii.  11 410 

n^rip 411 

Ecclesiaslicus  xxiv.  27     ...  411 


LECT.  X^ 

Antiquity  of  the  ode  . 
Lyric  poetry  of  David 
Psalm  xxiii 


i 


.  412 

.  413 

414 

415 


LECT.  XXVI. 

Psalm  xci.  9.    .     .     .....  417 

Didactic  and  historic  Psalms     .  418 

LECT.  XXVII. 

Psalm  xxiv.  6  .     .     .     .     .     .     .  419 

Interpretation  of  the  historic 

Psalms     ........  419 

Psalm  xxix.  9   .......  421 

Coniectural  emendations  of  the 

text     .........  422 

LECT.  XXVIII. 

Song  of  Deborah      .....  423 

Habakkuk  iii  ........  426 

Isaiah  xiv  .........  426 

LECT.  XXX. 

Dramatic  Psalms  ......  426 

Solomon's  Song    ......  429 

LECT.  XXXI. 

Isaiah  Ixii.  5    .......  431 

Freedom  of  Oriental  imagery  .  432 
Allegorical  interpretation  of  Sol- 

omon's  Song     ......  432 

Mystical  poetry  of  the  Persians  438 
Illustration  of  passages  quoted 

from  Solomon's  Song     .     .     .  442 

LECT.  XXXII. 

Scene  and  characters  of  the  book 
of  Job   .........  448 

Antiquity  of  the  poem    ....  451 

Structure   and    contents  of  the 
poem    .........  453 

LECT.  XXXIII. 

The  book  of  Job  not  a  perfect 
drama  .  ...  459 


LECT.  XXXIV. 

Job    xviii.   4 

Job  xxx vii.  4     .     , 


460 
461 


LIST  OF  BOOKS 462 

INDEX  OF  PASSAGES  ILLUSTRATED  463 


UNIVERSITY 


LECTURE  I. 

THE  INTRODUCTION. 

OF  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  OF  POETRY. 

The  purpose  of  poetry  is  to  instruct  while  it  gives  pleasure  ;  instruction  being  the  end,  and  pleas- 
ure the  means  —  Illustrated  by  examples  from  the  different  species  of  poetry  —  The  Didactic  — 
The  Epic  —  Tragedy  —  Lyric  —  the  lighter  kinds  of  poetry,  which  are  calculated  as  well  for 
the  amusement  of  our  leisure,  as  for  the  ornament  and  improvement  of  literature.  Sacred 
poetry;  whence  a  transition  to  the  immediate  object  of  these  Lectures. 

THOUGH  our  present  meeting  be,  on  some  accounts,  rather  ear- 

lier than  I  could  have  wished  ;  (A)  yet  I  cheerfully  embrace  the  op- 

portunity which  it  affords  me  of  assuring  you,  gentlemen,  that  to 

this  undertaking  (whether  considered  as  a  duty  imposed,  or  as  a  fa- 

vour conferred  upon  me)  I  bring,  if  no  other  accomplishment,  at 

least  industry  and    inclination.      I  could,  indeed,  more  patiently 

bear  to  be  accused  of  wanting  genius,  fluency,  or  elegance,  than  of 

wanting  diligence  in  the  exercise  of  that  office,  to  which  your  au- 

thority has  called  me,  or  gratitude  in  the  acceptance  of  that  favour, 

which  (whatever  it  be  in  itself)  is  undoubtedly  great,  since  confer- 

red on  me  by  you.     For  to  judge  rightly  of  obligations  of  this  kind, 

regard  must  be  had  not  only  to  the  favour  itself,  but  to  the  persons 

who  confer  it,  and  to  the  person  on  whom  it  is  conferred.     When, 

therefore,  I  reflect,  that  the  station,  to  which  I  am  invited,  has  been 

adorned  by  men  of  the  first  rank  and  genius  in  learning  ;  when  I 

regard  you,  whose  favour  can   add  dignity  to  the  most  respectable 

characters  ;  when,  in  fine,  I  consider  myself,  who  could  never  have 

expected  or  hoped  from  my  own  merits  for  any  public  testimony  of 

your  approbation  ;   I  receive  this  appointment  as  an  honour,   for 

which  the  utmost  exertions  of  labour  and  assiduity  will  be  but  a 

very  inadequate  return.     This  part  of  my  duty,   however,  though 

feebly  and  imperfectly,  T  would  wish  you  to  believe  I  most  willingly 

perform  :  for  to  an  ingenuous  mind  nothing  can  be  more  agreeable 

2 


10  OP  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  L.ECT.    I. 

than  the  expression,  or  even  the  sense  of  gratitude  ;  and  the  remem- 
brance of  the  obligation  will  rather  stimulate  than  depress.  Other 
considerations  have,  I  must  confess,  rendered  me  not  a  little  solici- 
tous :  I  am  appointed  to  superintend  a  particular  department  of  sci- 
ence, which  you  have  constantly  distinguished  by  your  presence  and 
attention  ;  and  a  subject  is  to  be  discussed,  which  not  only  you  have 
judged  worthy  of  your  cultivation,  and  the  public  countenance  of  the 
University,  but  which  has  hitherto  received  in  this  place  all  the  em- 
bellishments of  grace  and  elegance,  of  which  it  is  naturally  suscepti- 
ble. Should  it  therefore  fall  into  neglect  or  disrepute  hereafter,  I 
fear,  that  I  should  be  compelled  to  acknowledge  the  fault  to  have 
been  mine,  and  not  that  of  the  institution  itself. 

Whatever  degree  of  success  indeed  may  attend  my  endeavours,  let 
it  not  for  a  moment  be  suspected,  that  the  design  is  not  altogether  de- 
serving of  approbation.  For  can  there  be  any  thing  of  more  real  impor- 
tance to  literature  itself;  can  any  thing  be  more  consistent  with  the 
ends  for  which  this  University  was  founded,  than  that  the  art,  of 
whose  assistance  every  other  art  and  profession  has  so  greatly  avail- 
ed itself,  should  be  assigned  a  place  among  the  rest  ?  That  art,  so 
venerable  for  its  antiquity,  so  delightful  in  itself;  that  art,  which  is 
in  a  manner  congenial  to  humanity,  and  which  sets  off  nature  by  the 
most  agreeable  representation  of  her  beauties  :  which  among  the  ig- 
norant and  the  learned,  the  idle  and  the  studious,  has  ever  obtained 
favour,  admiration,  and  regard.  Nothing  surely  can  be  more  worthy 
of  a  liberal  and  accomplished  mind,  than  to  perceive  what  is  perfect, 
and  what  is  defective  in  an  art,  the  beauties  of  which  frequently  lie 
beneath  the  surface  ;  to  understand  what  is  graceful,  what  is  becom- 
ing, in  what  its  excellencies  consist,  and  in  a  word,  to  discover  and 
relish  those  delicate  touches  of  grace  and  elegance,  that  lie  beyond 
the  reach  of  vulgar  apprehension.  From  these  subtile  researches 
after  beauty  and  taste,  there  is  also  the  fairest  reason  to  apprehend 
that  the  judgement  itself  will  receive  some  accessions  of  strength 
and  acuteness,  which  it  may  successfully  employ  upon  other  objects, 
and  upon  other  occasions.  Such  at  least  appear  to  have  been  the 
sentiments  of  that  excellent  person,1  to  whose  munificence  poetry  has 
been  long  indebted  for  her  admission  into  the  circle  of  those  sciences 
which  are  cultivated  in  this  University.  For,  possessing  a  mind  not 
only  instructed  in  the  most  useful  branches  of  knowledge,  but  adorn- 

1  The  poetic  lecture  was  instituted  by  HENRY  BIRKHEAD,  L  L.  D.  formerly 
Fellow  of  All  Souls. 


LECT.  I.  OF  POETRY.  11 

ed  with  the  most  elegant  arts ;  and  having  imbibed  the  first  prin- 
ciples of  education  in  a  seminary,  where  the  most  important  and  sa- 
cred subjects,  recommended  by  all  the  elegance  of  polite  literature, 
have  been  heretofore,  and  still  continue  to  be,  studied  with  vigour 
and  effect ;  he  saw  and  experienced,  how  much  an  attention  to  these 
elegancies  would  contribute  to  the  investigation  or  illustration  of 
the  severer  branches  of  erudition,  and  how  strict  the  alliance  be- 
tween philosophy  and  the  muses. 

The  design,  therefore,  of  the  author  of  this  institution,  as  well  as 
the  usual  practice  on  occasions  like  the  present,  reminds  me,  gentle- 
men, of  the  propriety  (though  a  matter  already  familiar  to  most  of 
you)  of  premising  a  few  such  observations,  as  appear  least  excep- 
tionable, concerning  the  end  and  utility  of  the  poetic  art. 

Poetry  is  commonly  understood  to  have  two  objects  in  view, 
namely,  advantage  and  pleasure,  or  rather  an  union  of  both.  I  wish 
those  who  have  furnished  us  with  this  definition,  had  rather  propos- 
ed utility  as  its  ultimate  object,  (B)  and  pleasure  as  the  means  by 
which  that  end  may  be  effectually  accomplished.  The  philosopher 
and  the  poet  indeed  seem  principally  to  differ  in  the  means,  by 
which  they  pursue  the  same  end.  Each  sustains  the  character  of  a 
preceptor,  which  the  one  is  thought  best  to  support,  if  he  teach  with 
accuracy,  with  subtlety,  and  with  perspicuity ;  the  other,  with  splen- 
dour, harmony,  and  elegance.  The  one  makes  his  appeal  to  reason  \ 
only,  independent  of  the  passions  ;  the  other  addresses  the  reason  in  ) 
such  a  manner,  as  even  to  engage  the  passions  on  his  side.  The/ 
one  proceeds  to  virtue  and  truth  by  the  nearest  and  most  compendi- 
ous ways ;  the  other  leads  to  the  same  point  through  certain  deflex- 
ions and  deviations,  by  a  winding,  but  pleasanter  path.  It  is  the 
part  of  the  former  so  to  describe  and  explain  these  objects,  that  we 
must  necessarily  become  acquainted  with  them  ;  it  is  the  part  of  the 
latter  so  to  dress  and  adorn  them,  that  of  our  own  accord  we  must 
love  and  embrace  them. 

I  therefore  lay  it  down  as  a  fundamental  maxim,  that  poetry  is  j 
useful,  chiefly  because  it  is  agreeable  ;  and  should  I,  as  we  are  apt 
to  do,  attribute  too  much  to  my  favourite  occupation,  I  trust  philos- 
ophy will  forgive  me,  when  I  add,  that  the  writings  of  the  poet  are 
more  useful  than  those  of  the  philosopher,  inasmuch  as  they  are  more 
agreeable.  To  illustrate  this  position  by  well  known  examples  :  Can 
it  be  supposed  that  the  more  learned  Romans,  when  they  became 
devoted  to  the  doctrine  of  Epicurus,  did  not  more  highly  esteem,  and 


12  OF  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  L.ECT.  I. 

more  frequently  apply  to  the  admirable  poem  of  Lucretius,  than  to 
Catius,  or  Amafanius,  or  even  the  commentaries  of  Epicurus  him- 
self?    Who  can  believe  that  even  the  most^  tasteless  could  peruse 
the  writings  on  agriculture,  either  of  the  learned  Varro,  or  (not  to 
mention  the  elder  Cato)  of  Columella,  an  author  by  no  means  defi- 
cient in  elegance,  with  the  same  pleasure  and  attention  as  that  most 
delightful  and  most  perfect  work,  the  Georgics  of  Virgil  1     A  work 
in  which  he  has  equalled  the  most  respectable  writers  in  the  solidity 
of  his  matter,  and  has  greatly  excelled  the  most  elegant  in  the  incred- 
ible harmony  of  his  numbers,  (c)  On  the  contrary,  if  Manilius,  who 
is  numbered  (and  rightly  if  we  may  credit  his  own  testimony)  among 
the  writers  of  the  Augustan  age,  has  treated  the  engaging  science  of 
astronomy  in  such  low  and  inelegant  verse,  as  even  scarcely  to  excel 
Julius  Firmicus,  a  prose  writer  on  the  same  subject  in  a  less  polish- 
ed age,  I  will  allow  him  the  merit  of  a  philosopher  and  astronomer, 
but  never  can  account  him  a  poet.     For  what  is  a  poet,  destitute  of 
harmony,  of  grace,  and  of  all  that  conduces  to  allurement  and  de- 
light ?  or  how  should  we  derive  advantage  or  improvement  from  an 
author,  whom  no  man  of  taste  can  endure  to  read  ?     The  reason, 
therefore,  why  poetry  is  so  studious  to  embellish  her  precepts  with  a 
certain  inviting  sweetness, 

"  Et  quasi  Musaeo  dulci  contingere  melle," 

'  is  plainly,  by  such  seasoning  to  conciliate  favour  to  her  doctrine,  as 
i  is  the  practice  even  of  physicians,  who  temper  with  pleasant  flavours 
'  their  least  agreeable  medicines  : 

"  Ut  puerorum  aetas  iraprovida  ludificetur 
Labrorum  terms,  interea  perpotet  amarum 
Absinthi  laticem,  deceptaque  non  capiatur;" 

as  Lucretius  expresses  himself  in  illustration  of  his  own  design,  as 
well  as  that  of  poetry  in  general. 

But  if  it  be  manifest,  even  in  authors  who  directly  profess  im- 
provement aiit!  advantage,  that  those  will  most  efficaciously  instruct, 
who  afford  most  entertainment ;  the  same  will  be  still  more  apparent 
in  those,  who,  dissembling  the  intention  of  instruction,  exhibit  only 
the  blandishments  of  pleasure  ;  and  while  they  treat  of  the  most  im- 
portant things,  of  all  the  principles  of  moral  action,  all  the  offices  of 
life,  yet  laying  aside  the  severity  of  the  preceptor,  adduce  at  once  all 
the  decorations  of  elegance,  and  all  the  attractions  of  amusement  : 
who  display,  as  in  a  picture,  the  actions,  the  manners,  the  pursuits 
and  passions  of  men  ;  and  by  the  force  of  imitation  and  fancy,  by 


LECT.  I.  OF  POETRY.  13 

the  harmony  of  numbers,  by  the  taste  and  variety  of  imagery,  capti- 
vate the  affections  of  the  reader,  and  imperceptibly,  or  perhaps  re- 
luctantly, impel  him  to  the  pursuit  of  virtue.  Such  is  the  real  pur- 
pose of  heroic  poetry  ;  such  is  the  noble  effect  produced  by  the  pe- 
rusal of  Homer.  And  who  so  thoughtless,  or  so  callous,  as  not  to 
feel  incredible  pleasure  in  that  most  agreeable  occupation  ;  who  is 
not  moved,  astonished,  enraptured  by  the  inspiration  of  that  most 
sublime  genius  ?  Who  so  inanimate  as  not  to  see,  not  to  feel  in- 
scribed, or  as  it  were  imprinted  upon  his  heart,  his  most  excellent 
maxims  concerning  human  life  and  manners  ?  From  philosophy  a 
few  cold  precepts  may  be  deduced ;  in  history  some  dull  and  spirit- 
less examples  of  manners  may  be  found  :  here  we  have  the  energet-  . 
ic  voice  of  virtue  herself,  here  we  behold  her  animated  form.  Poet- 
ry addresses  her  precepts  not  to  the  reason  alone  ;  she  calls  the  pas- 
sions to  her  aid  :  she  not  only  exhibits  examples,  but  infixes  them 
in  the  mind.  She  softens  the  wax  with  her  peculiar  ardour,  and 
renders  it  more  plastic  to  the  artist's  hand.  Thus  does  Horace  most 
truly  and  most  justly  apply  this  commendation  to  the  poets  : 

"  Qui  quid  sit  pulchrum,  quid  turpe,  quid  utile,  quid  non, 
Plenius  ac  melius  Chrysippo  etCrantore  dicit :" 

Plainer  or  more  completely,  because  they  do  not  perplex  their  disci- 
ples with  the  dry  detail  of  parts  and  definitions,  but  so  perfectly  and 
so  accurately  delineate,  by  examples  of  every  kind,  the  forms  of  the 
human  passions  and  habits,  the  principles  of  social  and  civilized  life, 
that  he,  who  from  the  schools  of  philosophy  should  turn  to  the  repre- 
sentations of  Homer,  would  feel  himself  transported  from  a  narrow 
and  intricate  path  to  an  extensive  and  flourishing  field.  Better,  be- 
cause the  poet  teaches  not  by  maxims  and  precepts,  and  in  the  dull, 
sententious  form  ;  but  by  the  harmony  of  verse,  by  the  beauty  of  im- 
agery, by  the  ingenuity  of  the  fable,  by  the  exactness  of  imitation, 
he  allures  and  interests  the  mind  of  the  reader,  he  fashions  it  to  hab- 
its of  virtue,  and  in  a  manner  informs  it  with  the  spirit  of  integrity 
iteelf. 

But  if,  from  the  heroic  we  turn  to  the  tragic  Muse,  to  which 
Aristotle2  indeed  assigns  the  preference,  because  of  the  true  and 
perfect  imitation,  we  shall  yet  more  clearly  evince  the  superiority  of 
poetry  over  philosophy,  on  the  principle  of  its  being  more  agreeable. 
Tragedy  is,  in  truth,  no  other  than  philosophy  introduced  upon  the 

2  Poet.  Cap.  ult. 


14  OF  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  L.ECT.  I. 

stage,  retaining  all  its  .  natural  properties,  remitting  nothing  of  its 
native  gravity,  but  assisted  and  embellished  by  other  favouring  cir- 
cumtances.  What  point,  for  instance,  of  moral  discipline,  have  the 
tragic  writers  of  Greece  left  untouched,  or  unadorned  1  What  duty 
of  life,  what  principle  of  political  economy,  what  motive  or  precept 
for  the  government  of  the  passions,  what  commendation  of  virtue  is 
.  there,  which  they  have  not  treated  of  with  fulness,  variety,  and  learn- 
ing ?  The  moral  of  ^Eschylus  (not  only  a  poet,  but  a  Pythagorean) 
will  ever  be  admired.  Nor  were  Sophocles  and  Euripides  less  illus- 
trious for  the  reputation  of  wisdom  ;  the  latter  of  whom  was  the  dis- 
ciple of  Socrates  and  Anaxagoras,  and  was  known  among  his  friends 
by  the  title  of  the  dramatic  philosopher.  In  these  authors  surely, 
the  allurements  of  poetry  afforded  some  accession  to  the  empire  of 
philosophy  ;  nor  indeed  has  any  man  arrived  at  the  summit  of  poetic 
fame,  who  did  not  previously  lay  the  foundation  of  his  art  in  true 
philosophy. 

Should  it  be  objected,  that  some  have  been  eminent  in  this  walk 
of  poetry,  who  never  studied  in  the  schools  of  the  philosophers,  nor 
enjoyed  the  advantages  of  an  education  above  the  common  herd  of 
mankind  ;  I  answer,  that  I  am  not  contending  about  the  vulgar  opin- 
ion, or  concerning  the  meaning  of  a  word  :  the  man  who,  by  the 
force  of  genius  and  observation,  has  arrived  at  a  perfect  knowledge 
of  mankind,  who  has  acquainted  himself  with  the  natural  powers  of 
the  human  mind,  and  the  causes  by  which  the  passions  are  excited 
and  repressed  ;  who  not  only  in  words  can  explain,  but  can  delin- 
eate to  the  senses  every  motion  of  the  soul ;  who  can  excite,  can 
temper  and  regulate  the  passions  ;  such  a  man,  though  he  may  not 
have  acquired  erudition  by  the  common  methods,  I  esteem  a  true 
philosopher.  The  passion  of  jealousy,  its  causes,  circumstances,  its 
progress  and  effects,  I  hold  to  be  more  accurately,  more  copiously, 
more  satisfactorily  described  in  one  of  the  dramas  of  Shakspeare, 
than  in  all  the  disputations  of  the  schools  of  philosophy. 

Now  if  tragedy  be  of  so  truly  a  philosophical  nature  ;  and  if  t» 
all  the  force  and  gravity  of  wisdom  it  add  graces  and  allurements  pe- 
culiarly its  own,  the  harmony  of  verse,  the  contrivance  of  the  fable, 
the  excellence  of  imitation,  the  truth  of  action ;  shall  we  not  say 
that  philosophy  must  yield  to  poetry  in  point  of  utility  ?  or  shall  we 
not  rather  say,  that  the  former  is  greatly  indebted  to  the  latter,  of 
whose  assistance  and  recommendation  it  makes  so  advantageous  a 
use,  in  order  to  attain  its  particular  purpose,  utility  or  improvement  ? 


LECT.  I.  OF  POETRY.  15 

"  But  if  the  force  of  imitation  and  fable  be  so  great,  the  force  of 
truth  itself  must  surely  appear  much  greater  :  we  should  therefore 
apply  to  history  rather  than  to  poetry  for  instruction  in  morals.'1 
This  however  is  a  mistaken  notion.  History  is  confined  within  too 
narrow  limits ;  history  is  subject  to  laws  peculiar  to  itself,  and  too 
severe  to  admit  of  such  an  application.  It  relates  things  as  they  re- 
ally were,  it  traces  events  under  the  guidance  of  authority  ;  it  must 
exhibit  what  has  happened,  not  what  might  or  ought  to  have  happen- 
ed. It  must  not  deviate  in  quest  of  reasonable  instruction  or  plau- 
sible conjecture,  but  confine  itself  to  that  path,  which  the  stubborn- 
ness of  fact  has  prescribed.  History  treats  of  things  and  persons 
which  have  been  in  actual  existence  ;  the  subjects  of  poetry  are  in- 
finite and  universal.  The  one  investigates  causes  through  the  un- 
certain medium  of  conjecture ;  the  other  demonstrates  them  with 
clearness  and  certainty.  The*  one  catches  the  casual  glimpses  of 
truth,  whenever  they  break  forth  to  the  view ;  the  other  contem- 
plates her  unclouded  appearance.  History  pursues  her  appointed 
journey  by  a  direct  path  ;  poetry  ranges  uncontrolled  over  the  wide 
expanse  of  nature.  The  former  must  make  her  precepts  subservient 
to  the  subject ;  the  latter  forms  a  subject  subordinate  to  her  precepts 
and  design.  For  these  reasons,  poetry  is  defined  by  Aristotle  to  be 
something  of  a  more  serious  and  plilosophical  nature  than  history  ;3 
nor  is  our  Bacon  (a  name  not  inferior  in  literature)  of  a  different  sen- 
timent. The  subject  itself,  and  the  authority  of  so  great  a  man,  re- 
quire that  the  passage  should  be  quoted  in  his  own  words,  "  Since 
the  sensible  world  is  in  dignity  inferior  to  the  rational  soul ;  poetry 
seems  to  endow  human  nature  with  that  which  lies  beyond  the  pow- 
er of  history,  and  to  gratify  the  mind  with  at  least  the  shadow  of 
things,  where  the  substance  cannot  be  had.  For  if  the  matter  be 
properly  considered,  an  argument  may  be  drawn  from  poetry,  that  a 
superior  dignity  in  things,  a  more  perfect  order,  and  a  more  beauti- 
ful variety  delights  the  soul  of  man,  than  is  found  in  nature  since  the 
fall.  As,  therefore,  the  actions  and  events,  which  are  the  subject  of 
true  history,  are  not  of  sufficient  amplitude  to  content  the  mind  of 
man  ;  poetry  is  at  hand,  and  invents  actions  of  a  more  heroic  nature. 
Because  true  history  reports  the  success  of  events  not  proportionably 
to  desert,  or  according  to  the  virtue  or  vice  that  has  been  displayed 

3  J£ui  if  (P.oaorpwTsgov  xai  OTrovdaiortQov  noitjatg  toroQiag  tarlv.     ARIST.  Poet, 
c.  9. 


16  ON  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  LfiCT.  I. 

in  them ;  poetry  corrects  this,  and  represents  events  and  fortunes 
according  to  justice  and  merit :  Because  true  history,  from  the  obvi- 
ous similarity  of  actions,  and  the  satiety  which  this  circumstance 
must  occasion,  frequently  creates  a  distaste  in  the  mind  ;  poetry 
cheers  and  refreshes  it,  exhibiting  things  uncommon,  varied,  and  full 
vjof  vicissitude.  As  poetry,  therefore,  contributes  not  only  to  pleasure, 
but  to  magnanimity  and  good  morals  ;  it  is  deservedly  supposed  to 
participate  in  some  measure  of  divine  inspiration ;  since  it  raises  the 
mind,  and  fills  it  with  sublime  ideas,  by  proportioning  the  appearan- 
ces of  things  to  the  desires  of  the  mind  ;  and  not  submitting  the  mind 
to  things,  like  reason  arid  history. "4(o) 

That  elevation  of  sentiment,  that  inspiration,  that  usefulness  in 
forming  the  manners,  is  however  by  no  means  so  peculiar  to  the  ep- 
ic (to  which  that  great  man  chiefly  refers  in  this  passage)  as  to  ex- 
clude the  claim  of  every  other  specie's  of  poetry  ;  there  are  others 
which  also  deserve  to  partake  in  the  commendation  ;  and  first  the 
ode, 

"  Ingentes  animos  angusto  in  pectore'versans," 

which,  though  in  some  respects  inferior  to  what  are  called  the  high- 
er species  of  poetry,  yields  to  none  in  force,  ardour,  and  sometimes 
even  in  dignity  and  solemnity.  Every  species  of  poetry  has  in  fact  its 
peculiar  mode  of  acting  on  the  human  feelings  ;  the  general  effect  is 
perhaps  the  same.  The  epic  accomplishes  its  design  with  more  lei- 
sure, with  more  consideration  and  care,  and  therefore  probably  with 
greater  certainty.  It  more  gradually  insinuates  itself,  it  penetrates, 
it  moves,  it  delights  ;  now  rising  to  a  high  degree  of  sublimity,  now 
subsiding  to  its  accustomed  smoothness  ;  and  conducting  the  read- 
er through  a  varied  and  delightful  scene,  it  applies  a  gentle  con- 
straint to  the  mind,  making  its  impression  by  the  forcible  nature  of 
this  application,  but  more  especially  by  its  continuance.  The  ode,  on 
the  contrary,  strikes  with  an  instantaneous  effect,  amazes,  and  as  it 
were,  storms  the  affections.  The  one  may  be  compared  to  a  flame, 
which,  fanned  by  the  winds,  gradually  spreads  itself  on  all  sides, 
and  at  last  involves  every  object  in  the  conflagration  ;  the  other  to  a 
flash  of  lightning,  which  instantaneously  bursts  forth, 
"  Magnamque  cadens,  magnamque  revertens 
Dat  stragem  late,  sparsosque  recolligitignes." 

The  amazing  power  of  lyric  poetry  in  directing  the  passions,  in 
4  De  Augm.  Scien.  L.  II.  13. 


LECT.  I.  OF  POETRY.  17 

forming  the  manners,  in  maintaining  civil  life,  and  particularly,  in 
exciting  and  cherishing  that  generous  elevation  of  sentiment,  on 
which  the  very  existence  of  public  virtue  seems  to  depend,  will  be 
sufficiently  apparent  by  only  contemplating  those  monuments  of  ge- 
nius, which  Greece  has  bequeathed  to  posterity.  If  we  examine  the 
poems  of  Pindar  (which,  though  by  no  means  accounted  the  most 
excellent  of  their  kind,  by  some  strange  fatality  are  almost  the  only 
specimens  that  remain)  how  exquisite  must  have  been  the  pleasure, 
how  vivid  the  sensation  to  the  Greek,  whose  ordinary  amusement  it 
was  to  sing,  or  hear  them  sung  !  For  this  kind  of  entertainment  was 
not  confined  to  persons  of  taste  and  learning,  but  had  grown  into 
general  use.  When  he  heard  his  gods,  his  heroes,  his  ancestors  re- 
ceived into  the  number  of  the  gods,  celebrated  in  a  manner  so  glo- 
rious, so  divine,  would  not  his  bosom  glow  with  the  desire  of  fame, 
with  the  most  fervid  emulation  of  virtue,  with  a  patriotism,  immode- 
rate perhaps,  but  honourable  and  useful  in  the  highest  degree  ?  Is  it 
wonderful,  that  he  should  be  so  elevated  with  this  greatness  of  mind 
(shall  I  call  it  ?)  or  rather  insolence  and  pride,  as  to  esteem  every  oth- 
er people  mean,  barbarous  and  contemptible,  in  comparison  with  him- 
self and  his  own  countrymen  ?  It  is  almost  unnecessary  to  remind 
this  assembly,  that,  in  the  sacred  games  (which  afforded  so  much  sup- 
port to  the  warlike  virtue  of  Greece5)  no  inconsiderable  share  of  dig- 
nity and  esteem  resulted  from  the  verses  of  the  poets  ;  nor  did  the 
Olympic  crown  exhibit  a  more  ample  reward  to  the  candidate  for  vic- 
tory, than  the  encomium  of  Pindar  or  Stesichorus.  I  wish  indeed, 
that  time  had  not  invidiously  deprived  us  of  the  works  of  the  latter, 
whose  majesty  and  excellence  commanded  universal  applause,  whom 
Dionysius  preferred  before  every  other  Lyric  poet,  because  he  made 
choice  of  the  sublimest  and  most  splendid  subjects,  and  in  the  am- 
plification of  them  preserved  most  completely  the  manners  and 
the  dignity  of  his  characters.  To  Alcaeus,  however,  the  same 
author  attributes  the  most  excellent  manner  of  treating  political 
subjects.6  As  a  man,  indeed,  how  great!  as  a  citizen  how 
strenuous  !  What  a  spirited  defender  of  the  laws  and  constitution 
of  his  country  !  What  a  vigorous  opposer  of  tyrants  !  who  conse- 
crated equally  his  sword  and  his  lyre  on  the  altar  of  freedom  !  whose 
prophetic  Muse,  ranging  through  every  region,  acted  as  the  sacred 

5  Consult  the  dissertation  of  the  learned  GILBERT  WEST  on  the  Olympic 
games.    Sect.  xvii. 

6  DION.  HALICAR.  T.  II.  p.  123.    Edit.  Hudson. 

3 


18  ON  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  L.ECT.  I, 

guardian,  not  for  the  present  .moment  only,  but  for  future  ages  ;  not 
of  his  own  city  alone,  but  of  the  whole  commonwealth  of  Greece. 
Poetry  such  as  this,  so  vehement,  so  animated,  is  certainly  to  be 
esteemed  highly  efficacious  as  well  in  exciting  the  human  mind  to 
virtue,  as  in  purifying  it  from  every  mean  and  vicious  propensity  ;  but 
still  more  especially  does  it  conduce  to  cherish  and  support  that  vig- 
our of  soul,  that  generous  temper  and  spirit,  which  is  both  the  off- 
spring and  guardian  of  liberty.  Could  an  apprehension  arise,  that 
another  Pisistratus  would  meditate  the  enslaving  of  that  city,  where 
at  every  banquet,  nay,  in  the  streets  and  in  the  meanest  assemblies 
of  the  common  people,  that  convivial  ode  was  daily  sung  which  bears 
the  name  of  Callistratus  ?  An  author  known  to  us  only  by  this  com- 
position, which  however  sufficiently  demonstrates  him  to  have  been 
an  admirable  poet  and  an  excellent  citizen  : 

'Ev  [U'QTOV  xiadl  TO  &i(fog  (poQi'aw, 


OTS  TOV  TvQctwo 


OVTI  TTOV  Ti&vij 
JVT/y'(Toi£  $*  |r  uaxuQtav  at  (padiv  iivait 
"  IvantQ  7toddjxrtg  ^^jriZsrg, 
TvdtiSijv  TS  ifctolv  ^fioui'jSsot, 

*Ev  fidgrov  x'AaSl  TO  t-iqiog  (poQtj 
r  x"  ' 


xltog  lOOfTai  XO.T?  alav, 


"On  TOV  rvQavvov  XTUVSTOV, 
*Iaoroitovg  r5  >^4.&>'irag  tnoi>\aarov.  (E) 


If  after  the  memorable  Ides  of  March,  any  one  of  the  Tyranni- 
cides had  delivered  to  the  populace  such  a  poem  as  this,  had  intro- 
ced  it  at  the  Suburra,  to  the  assemblies  of  the  Forum,  or  had  put  it 
into  the  mouths  of  the  common  people,  the  dominion  of  the  Caesars 
and  its  adherents  would  have  been  totally  extinguished  :  and  I  am 
firmly  persuaded,  that  one  stanza  of  this  simple  ballad  of  Harmodius 
would  have  been  more  effectual  than  all  the  Philippics  of  Cicero. 

There  are  some  other  species  of  poetry,  which  with  us  generally 
appear  in  an  easy  and  familiar  style,  but  formerly  assumed  sometimes 
a  graver  and  more  important  character.  Such  is  the  elegy  ;  I  do 
not  speak  of  the  light  and  amorous  elegy  of  the  moderns,  but  that. 


LECT.  I.  OP  POETRY.  19 

ancient,  serious,  sacred  and  didactic  elegy,  the  preceptress  of  morals, 
the  lawgiver  of  nations,  the  oracle  of  virtue.  Not  to  enter  into  a  de- 
tail of  authors,  of  whose  works  we  are  not  in  possession,  and  of  whose 
merits  we  consequently  can  form  no  adequate  judgement,  it  will  be 
sufficient  to  instance  Solon,  the  most  venerable  character  of  antiqui- 
ty, the  wisest  of  legislators,  and  withal  a  poet  of  no  mean  reputation. 
When  any  thing  difficult  or  perplexing  occurred  in  the  administra- 
tion of  public  affairs,  we  are  informed  that  he  had  recourse  to  po- 
etry.7, Were  the  laws  to  be  maintained  or  enforced  upon  any  par- 
ticular emergency  ;  was  the  indolence  or  licentiousness  of  the  cit- 
izens to  be  reproved  ;  were  their  minds  to  be  stimulated  to  the  love 
of  liberty,  he  immediately  attacked  them  with  some  poetical  produc- 
tion, bold,  animated  and  severe,  in  the  highest  tone  of  censorial  gravi- 
ty, and  yet  in  no  respect  deficient  in  elegance  : 

'Ex  vt(fi3.T]g  TiileTai  jftoroc  uivog  jfSf  ^a^ciC^g, 

BqovTt't  5'  fx  JLajATiQijg  yiyvirai  aa 
^^IvdQwv  <T  ix  jUeycUcov  nolig  oM.vrai'   tig  $e 
SQsiri  SovloOvvyv  entosv. 


It  is  a  well  known  fact,  that  Athens  was  altogether  indebted  for 
the  recovery  of  Salamis  to  the  verses  of  Solon  ;  even  contrary  to 
their  own  inclination  and  intention.  After  they  had,  from  re- 
peated overthrows,  fallen  into  the  deepest  despair,  insomuch  that  it 
was  made  a  capital  offence,  even  to  propose  the  renewal  of  the  war, 
or  the  reclaiming  of  the  island,  such  was  the  influence  of  that  sin- 
gle poem,  which  begins  —  "  Let  us  march  to  Salamis,"  that,  as  if 
pronounced  by  a  prophet,  instinct  with  divine  enthusiasm,  the  peo- 
ple, propelled  by  a  kind  of  celestial  inspiration,  flew  immediately 
to  arms,  became  clamorous  for  war,  and  sought  the  field  of  bat- 
tle with  such  incredible  ardour,  that  by  the  violence  of  their  on- 
set, after  a  great  slaughter  of  the  enemy,  they  achieved  a  most  decisive 
victory. 

We  have  also  some  remains  of  the  celebrated  TyrtgBus,  who 

"  mares  animos  in  martia  bolla 
Versibus  exacuit;" 

The  whole  scope  and  subject  of  his  compositions,  is  the  celebration  of 
valour  and  patriotism,  and  the  immortal  glory  of  those,  who  bravely 
fell  in  battle  :  —  compositions,  which  could  impart  some  degree  of 
courage  even  to  the  timid  and  unmanly  ;  by  which,  indeed,  he  ele- 

7  See  PLUTARCH  and  DIOG.  LAERT.  Life  of  Solon. 


20  OP  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  LfiCT.  I. 

vated  the  minds  of  the  Lacedemonians,  which  had  been  long  debili- 
tated and  depressed,  to  the  certain  hope  of  victory.  The  fact  is  well 
known,  and  had  it  not  been  corroborated  by  the  testimony  of  so  many 
authors,  it  would  doubtless  have  been  thought  by  some  incredible  ; 
though  I  confess  it  appears  to  me  no  less  supported  by  the  reason  of 
things  than  by  the  authority  of  the  historian.  It  is  impossible  that 
men  should  act  otherwise  than  with  the  most  heroic  ardour,  the 
most  undaunted  resolution,  who  sung  to  the  martial  pipe,  when  ar- 
ranged in  military  order,  marching  to  the  onset,  or  perhaps  actually 
engaged,  such  strains  as  these  : 

yijg  TttQi  rtjcsSf  iia%w(.it&a,  xai  Tteqi  naiStav 


riot   t.u.  uuxso3s  naf 
Mi]8i  (pvyij;  aiajfoag  u 
//A/.t*  iig  fv  Siaflag  tuevtT(»,  nuGiv  af 

Tii  y^S,  x£f?-°S  odovoi  <J«xa>r, 
<T  tv  xtiQi  nvaooiria  oftQtuov  fyx°$> 

1.6<pov  dstvov  vntg  xe<fa2.f-[g' 
Kai  Tiodct  nutf  nodi  &fig,  xui  in*  aOTildoq  ct(STtiS> 

3  Ev  dt  l.oipov  is  Zoipoj,  xai  xvvtTjv 
JCott  Gftorov  OTtovco  TftTfififilvof  avdoi 

"H  t;iipeog   xutTtyv,  J;  duQV  paxQov  s7.(av. 
OvdtftoTf  yJ.tog  lo^^ov  anulJ.vrai,  ovff  ovou*  aihov, 

*^4W,  vno  yfjg  TCSQ  f«wv,  yfyi'frai  afravarog, 
"  OVTIV*  aQiOTfvovra,  uivovru  re,  fiaQvatusvov  TS 


Not  entirely  to  omit  the  lighter  kinds  of  poetry,  many  will  think 
that  we  allow  them  full  enough,  when  we  suppose  their  utility  to 
consist  in  the  entertainment  which  they  afford.  Nor  is  this,  gentlemen, 
altogether  to  be  despised,  if  it  be  considered  that  this  entertainment, 
this  levity  itself,  affords  relaxation  to  the  mind  when  wearied  with 
the  laborious  investigation  of  truth  ;  that  it  unbends  the  understand- 
ing, after  intense  application  ;  restores  it  when  debilitated  ;  and  re- 
freshes it,  even  by  an  interchange  and  variety  of  study.  In  this  we 
are  countenanced  by  the  example  and  authority  of  the  greatest  men 
of  Greece,  by  that  of  Solon,  Plato,  and  Aristotle  ;  among  the  Romans, 
by  that  of  Scipio  and  Laelius,  Julius  and  Augustus  Caesar,  Varro 
and  Brutus,  who  filled  up  the  intervals  of  their  more  important  en- 
gagements, their  severer  studies,  with  the  agreeableness  and  hi- 
larity of  their  poetical  talent.  Nature  indeed  seems  in  this  most 
wisely  to  have  consulted  for  us,  who,  while  she  impels  us  to  the 
knowledge  of  truth,  which  is  frequently  remote,  and  only  to  be 


LECT.  I.  OF  POETRY.  21 

prosecuted  with  indefatigable  industry,  has  provided  also  these  pleas- 
ing recreations,  as  a  refuge  to  the  mind,  in  which  it  might  occasionally 
shelter  itself,  and  find  an  agreeable  relief  from  langour  and  anxiety. 
But  there  is  yet  a  further  advantage  to  be  derived  from  these 
studies,  which  ought  not  to  be  neglected  ;  for  besides  possessing  in 
reserve  a  certain  solace  of  your  labours,  from  the  same  repository 
you  will  also  be  supplied  with  many  of  the  brightest  ornaments  of 
literature.  The  first  object  is,  indeed,  to  perceive  and  comprehend 
clearly  the  reasons,  principles,  and  relations  of  things  ;  the  next  is  to 
be  able  to  explain  your  conceptions  not  only  with  perspicuity,  but 
with  a  degree  of  elegance.  For  in  this  respect  we  are  all  of  us  in 
some  measure  fastidious  :  we  are  seldom  contented  with  a  jejune  and 
naked  exposition  even  of  the  most  serious  subjects ;  some  of  the 
seasonings  of  art,  some  ornaments  of  style,  some  splendour  of 
diction,  are  of  necessity  to  be  adopted  ;  even  some  regard  is  due 
to  the  harmony  of  numbers,  and  to  the  gratification  of  the  ear. 
In  alfthese  respects,  though  I  grant  that  the  language  of  poetry 
differs  very  widely  from  that  of  all  other  kinds  of  composition,  yet 
he,  who  has  bestowed  some  time  and  attention  on  the  perusal 
and  imitation  of  the  poets,  will,  I  am  persuaded,  find  his  understand- 
ing exercised  and  improved  as  it  were  in  this  Palaestra,  the  vigour 
and  activity  of  his  imagination  increased,  and  even  his  manner  of 
expression  to  have  insensibly  acquired  a  tinge  from  this  elegant  in- 
tercourse. Thus  we  observe  in  persons,  who  have  been  taught  to 
dance,  a  certain  indescribable  grace  and  manner  ;  though  they  do 
not  form  their  common  gesture  and  gait  by  any  certain  rules,  yet 
there  results  from  that  exercise  a  degree  of  elegance,  which  accom- 
panies those  who  have  been  proficients  in  it,  even  when  they  have 
relinquished  the  practice.  Nor  is  it  in  the  least  improbable,  that 
both  Caesar  and  Tully  (the  one  the  most  elegant,  the  other  the  most 
eloquent  of  the  Romans)  might  have  derived  considerable  assistance 
from  the  cultivation  of  this  branch  of  polite  literature,  since  it  is  well 
known,  that  both  of  them  were  addicted  to  the  reading  of  poetry,  and 
even  exercised  in  the  composition  of  it.  (F)  This  too  is  so  apparent 
in  the  writings  of  Plato,  that  he  is  thought  not  only  to  have  erred  in 
his  judgement,  but  to  have  acted  an  ungrateful  part,  when  he  exclu- 
ded from  his  imaginary  commonwealth  that  art,  to  which  he  was  so 
much  indebted  for  the  splendour  and  elegance  of  his  genius,  from 
whose  fountains  he  had  derived  that  soft,  copious,  and  harmonious; 
style,  for  which  he  is  so  justly  admired. 


22  OP  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  LfiCT.  I. 

But  to  return  to  the  nobler  and  more  important  productions  of 
the  Muses.  Thus  far  poetry  must  be  allowed  to  stand  eminent 
among  the  other  liberal  arts  ;  inasmuch  as  it  refreshes  the  mind  when 
it  is  fatigued,  soothes  it  when  it  is  agitated,  relieves  and  invigorates 
it  when  it  is  depressed  ;  as  it  elevates  the  thoughts  to  the  admiration 
of  what  is  beautiful,  what  is  becoming,  what  is  great  and  noble  :  nor 
/I  is  it  enough  to  say,  that  it  delivers  the  precepts  of  virtue  in  the  most 
i\  agreeable  manner  ;  it  insinuates  or  instils  into  the  soul  the  very 
\  1  principles  of  morality  itself.  Moreover,  since  the  desire  of  glory,  in- 
nate in  man,  appears  to  be  the  most  powerful  incentive  to  great  and 
heroic  actions,  it  is  the  peculiar  function  of  poetry  to  improve  this 
bias  of  our  nature,  and  thus  to  cherish  and  enliven  the  embers  of 
virtue  ;  and  since  one  of  the  principal  employments  of  poetry  con- 
sists in  the  celebration  of  great  and  virtuous  actions,  in  transmitting 
to  posterity  the  examples  of  the  bravest  and  most  excellent  of  men, 
and  in  consecrating  their  names  to  immortality  ;  this  praise  is  cer- 
tainly its  due,  that  while  it  forms  the  mind  to  habits  of  rectitude  by 
its  precepts,  directs  it  by  example,  excites  and  animates  it  by  its  pe- 
culiar force,  it  has  also  the  distinguished  honour  of  distributing  to 
virtue  the  most  ample  and  desirable  rewards  of  its  labours. 

But  after  all,  we  shall  think  more  humbly  of  poetry  than  it  de- 

i  serves,  unless  we  direct  our  attention  to  that  quarter,  where  its  im- 
portance is  most  eminently  conspicuous  ;  unless  we  contemplate  it 

I    as  employed   on  sacred  subjects,  and  in  subservience  to  religion. 

\  This  indeed  appears  to  have  been  the  original  office  and  destination 
^  j  of  poetry  ;  and  this  it  still  so  happily  performs,  that  in  all  other  cases 

\    it  seems  out  of  character,  as  if  intended  for  this  purpose  alone.     In 

other   instances,  poetry  appears  to  want  the   assistance  of  art,  but 

j  in  this,  to  shine  forth  with  all  its  natural  splendour,  or  rather  to   be 

>  animated  by  that  inspiration,  which  on  other  occasions  is  spoken  of 
without  being  felt.  These  observations  are  remarkably  exemplified 
in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  than  which  the  human  mind  can  conceive 
nothing  more  elevated,  more  beautiful,  or  more  elegant ;  in  which 
the  almost  ineffable  sublimity  of  the  subject  is  fully  equalled  by  the 
energy  of  the  language,  and  the  dignity  of  the  style.  And  it  is  wor- 
tlTy~of  observation,  that  as  some  6f~fhese  writings  exceed  in  anti- 
quity the  fabulous  ages  of  Greece,  in  sublimity  they  are  superior  to 
the  most  finished  productions  of  that  polished  people.  Thus  if  the 
actual  origin  of  poetry  be  inquired  after,  it  must  of  necessity  be  re- 
ferred to  religion  ;  and  since  it  appears  to  be  an  art  derived  from 


LECT.  I.  OF  POETRY.  23 

nature  alone,  peculiar  to  no  age  or  nation,  and  only  at  an  advanced 
period  of  society  conformed  to  rule  and  method,  it  must  be  wholly  I 
attributed  to  the  more  violent  affections  of  the  heart,  the  nature  of  \ 
which  is  to  express  themselves  in  an  animated  and  lofty  tone,  with    \ 
a  vehemence  of  expression   far  remote   from  vulgar  use.     It  is  also 
no  less  observable,  that  these   affections  break   and   interrupt  the 
enunciation   by  their  impetuosity  ;    they  burst  forth  in  sentences 
pointed,  earnest,   rapid,   and  tremulous ;  and  in  some   degree  the 
style,  as  well  as  the  modulation,  is  adapted  to  the  emotions  and  habits 
of  the  mind.     This  is  particularly  the  case  in  admiration  and  de- 
light ;  and  what  passions  are  so  likely  to  be  excited  by  religious  con- 
templations as  these  ?     What  ideas  could  so  powerfully  affect  a  new- 
created  mind  (undepraved  by  habit  or  opinion)  as  the  goodness,  the 
wisdom,  and  the  greatness  of  the   Almighty  1     Is  it  not  probable, 
that  the  first  effort  of  rude  and  unpolished  verse  would  display  itself  \     . 
in  the  praise  of  the  Creator,  and  flow  almost  involuntarily  from  the  j  ^ 
enraptured  mind  ?    Thus  far  at  least  is  certain,  that  poetry  has  been 
nurtured  in  those  sacred  places,  where  she  seems  to  have  been  first 
called  into  existence  ;  and  that  her  original  occupation  was  in  the 
temple  and  at  the  altar.     However  ages  and  nations  may  have  differ- 
ed in  their  religious  sentiments  and  opinions,  in  this  at  least  we  find 
them  all  agreed,  that  the  mysteries  of  their  devotion  were  celebrated 
in  verse.     Of  this  origin  poetry  even  yet  exhibits  no  obscure  indica-  *  f 
tions,  since  she  ever  embraces  a  divine  and  sacred  subject  with  a 
kind  of  filial  tenderness  and  affection.     To  the  sacred  haunts  of  re- 
ligion she  delights  to  resort  as  to  her  native  soil ;  there  she  most     ^ 
willingly  inhabits,  and  there  she  flourishes  in  all  her  pristine  beauty 
and  vigour.     But  to  have  slightly  glanced  at  the  subject,  appears 
sufficient  for  the  present ;  we  shall  soon  perhaps  find  an  opportunity 
of  entering  upon  a  more  ample  discussion. (G) 

I  trust,  indeed,  that  you  will  pardon  me,  gentlemen,  if  I  do  not 
as  yet  venture  to  explain  my  future  plan  of  instruction,  and  the  form 
and  method  which  I  think  of  pursuing.  That  man  must  have  too 
little  respect  for  your  judgement,  and  by  far  too  high  an  opinion  of 
his  own,  who  would  presume  to  produce  before  you  matter  not  suf- 
ficiently digested,  not  sufficiently  polished  and  perfected  by  study 
and  by  the  maturest  consideration.  I  have  therefore  determined 
within  myself,  that  nothing  shall  hastily  or  prematurely  proceed  from 
me  in  this  assembly,  nothing  which  is  not  laboured  to  the  extent  of 
my  abilities ;  and  that  for  what  is  wanting  in  genius,  in  erudition, 


24  OF  THE  USES  AND  DESIGN  L.ECT.  I. 

in  fluency,  and  in  every  respect  in  which  I  feel  myself  deficient,  I 
shall  endeavour  to  compensate,  as  much  as  possible,  by  care  and  as- 
siduity. If  in  these  points  I  shall  be  enabled  to  perform  my  duty, 
I  trust,  gentlemen,  that  other  deficiences  you  will  be  kind  enough  to 
excuc-e  ;  and  that  the  person  whom  you  have  honoured  with  your  fa- 
vour and  attention  ;  with  your  candour  and  indulgence,  you  will  con- 
tinue to  support. 


LECTURE  II. 


THE  DESIGN  AND  ARRANGEMENT  OF  THESE  LECTURES. 

The  dignity  of  the  subject,  and  its  suitableness  to  the  design  of  the  institution — That  poetry 
which  proceeds  from  divine  inspiration,  is  not  beyond  the  province  of  criticism — Criticism 
will  enable  us  to  account  for  the  origin  of  the  art,  as  well  as  to  form  a  just  estimation  of  its 
dignity  ;  that  the  opinion  of  the  divine  origin  of  poetry  was  common  in  Greece — This  work 
purely  critical:  and  consequently  theological  disquisitions  will  be  avoided — The  general  dis- 
tribution of  the  subject  into  three  parts,  the  nature  of  the  verse,  the  style,  and  the  arrange- 
ment. 

SOCRATES,  as  we  read  in  Plato,1  having  been  frequently  admon- 
ished in  a  dream  to  apply  to  music  ;  and  esteeming  himself  bound 
to  fulfil  a  duty,  which  appeared  to  have  been  imposed  upon  him  by 
divine  authority,  began  with  composing  a  hymn  to  Apollo,  and  after- 
wards undertook  to  translate  some  of  the  fables  of  uEsop  into  verse. 
This  he  did,  I  apprehend,  under  the  persuasion,  that  the  first  fruits 
of  his  poetry  (which  he  esteemed  the  principal  branch  of  the  science 
of  music2)  ought  to  be  consecrated  to  the  immortal  gods  ;  and  that  it 
was  not  lawful  for  him,  who  was  but  little  versed  in  those  studies,  to 
descend  to  lighter  subjects,  which  perhaps  might  in  the  main  be 
more  agreeable  to  his  genius,  before  he  had  discharged  the  obli- 
gations of  religion.  It  is  my  intention,  gentlemen,  to  follow  the  ex- 
ample of  this  great  philosopher  ;  and  since  the"  university  has  honour- 
ed me  with  this  office  of  explaining  to  you  the  nature  and  principles 
of  poetry,  I  mean  to  enter  upon  it  from  that  quarter,  whence  he 
thought  himself  obliged  to  commence  the  study  and  practice  of  the 
art.  I  have  determined,  therefore,  in  the  first  place,  to  treat  of  sa- 
cred poetry,  that  species,  I  mean,  which  was  cultivated  by  the  an- 
cient Hebrews,  and  which  is  peculiarly  appropriated  to  subjects  the 
most  solemn  and  sublime  ;  that  should  my  endeavours  prove  unequal 
to  so  great  a  subject,  I  may,  as  it  were,  with  favourable  auspices, 

1  Phced.  sub  init. 

2  "  What  then  is  education  ?— As  far  as  respects  the  body,  it  consists  in  the 
gymnastic  exercises ;  as  far  as  respects  the   mind,  it  consists  in  harmony." 
PLATO  de  Rep.  Lib.  II. 

4 

ft\'  '.     /  V.4  V*  * 


26  THE  DESIGN  AND  ARRANGEMENT  L.ECT.  II. 

descend  to  matters  of  inferior  importance.  I  undertake  this  office, 
however,  with  the  most  perfect  conviction,  that  not  only  from  a  re- 
gard to  duty  it  ought  to  be  executed  with  diligence  ;  but  from  the 
respectability  of  that  body,  at  whose  command  it  is  undertaken,  it 
ought  to  be  executed  with  honour  and  reputation  ;  nor  is  it  merely 
to  be  considered  what  the  intent  of  the  institution  and  the  improve- 
ment of  the  students  may  require,  but  what  will  be  consistent  with 
the  dignity  of  this  university.  For  since  the  university,  when  it  gave 
its  sanction  to  this  species  of  discipline  by  a  special  degree,  recom- 
mended the  study  of  poetry,  particularly  because  it  might  conduce 
to  the  improvement  of  the  more  important  sciences,  as  well  sacred 
as  profane,3  nothing  could  certainly  appear  more  useful  in  itself,  or 
more  agreeable  to  the  purpose  of  this  institution,  and  the  design  of 
its  learned  patrons,  than  to  treat  of  that  species  of  poetry,  which  con- 
stitutes so,  considerable  a  part  of  sacred  literature,  and  excels  all  oth- 
er poetry,  not  less  in  the  sublimity  of  the  style,  than  in  the  dignity 
of  the  subject. 

It  would  not  be  easy,  indeed,  to  assign  a  reason,  why  the  wri- 
tings of  Homer,  of  Pindar,  and  of  Horace,  should  engross  our  atten- 
tion and  monopolize  our  praise,  while  those  of  Moses,  of  David  and 
Isaiah  pass  totally  unregarded.  Shall  we  suppose  that  the  subject  is 
not  adapted  to  a  seminary,  in  which  sacred  literature  has  ever  main- 
tained a  precedence  ?  Shall  we  say,  that  it  is  foreign  to  this  assem- 
bly of  promising  youth,  of  whom  the  greater  part  have  consecrated 
the  best  portion  of  their  time  and  labour  to  the  same  department  of 
learning  ?  Or  must  we  conclude,  that  the  writings  of  those  men, 
who  have  accomplished  only  as  much  as  human  genius  and  ability 
could  accomplish,  should  be  reduced  to  method  and  theory ;  but  that 
those  which  boast  a  much  higher  origin,  and  are  justly  attributed  to 
the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  may  be  considered  as  indeed  illus- 
trious by  their  native  force  and  beauty,  but  not  as  conformable  to 
the  principles  of  science,  nor  to  be  circumscribed  by  any  rules  of 
art  ?  It  is  indeed  most  true,  that  sacred  poetry,  if  we  contemplate 
jits  origin  alone,  is  far  superior  to  both  nature  and  art ;  but  if  we 
Iwould  rightly  estimate  its  excellencies,  that  is,  if  we  wish  to  undei 
Wand  its  power  in  exciting  the  human  affections,  we  must  have  re- 
course to  both  :  for  we  must  consider  what  those  affections  are,  and 
by  what  means  they  are  to  be  excited.  Moreover,  as  in  all  other 
branches  of  science,  so  in  poetry,  art  or  theory  consists  in  a  certain 

3  See  the  statute  relating  to  the  poetic  lecture. 


.  II.  OF  THESE  LECTURES.  27 

knowledge  derived  from  the  careful  observation  of  nature,  and  con- 
firmed by  practice  and  experience  ;  for  men  of  learning  having  re- 
marked in  things  what  was  graceful,  what  was  fit,  what  was  condu- 
cive to  the  attainment  of  certain  ends,  they  digested  such  discoveries 
as  had  been  casually  made,  and  reduced  them  to  an  established  or- 
der or  method  :  whence  it  is  evident,  that  art  deduces  its  origin  from 
the  works  of  genius,  not  that  genius  has  been  formed  or  directed  by- 
art  ;  and  that  it  is  properly  applied  in  illustrating  the  works  of  even 
those  writers,  who  were  either  ignorant  of  its  rules,  or  inattentive  to 
them.  Since  then  it  is  the  purpose  of  sacred  poetry  to  form  the  hu- 
man mind  to  the  constant  habit  of  true  virtue  and  piety,  and  to  ex-- 
cite the  more  ardent  affections  of  the  soul,  in  order  to  direct  them  to 
their  proper  end  ;  whoever  has  a  clear  insight  into  the  instruments, 
the  machinery  as  it  were,  by  which  this  end  is  effected,  will  certain- 
ly contribute  not  a  little  to  the  improvement  of  the  critical  art.  Now, 
although  it  be  scarcely  possible  to  penetrate  to  the  fountains  of  this 
celestial  Nile,  yet  it  may  surely  be  allowed  us  to  pursue  the  mean- 
ders of  the  stream,  to  mark  the  flux  and  reflux  of  its  waters,  and 
even  to  conduct  a  few  rivulets  into  the  adjacent  plains. (A) 

The  sacred  poetry  is  undoubtedly  entitled  to  the  first  rank  in 
this  school,  since  from  it  we  are  to  learn  both  the  origin  of  the  art, 
and  how  to  estimate  its  excellence.  The  commencement  of  other 
arts,  however  rude  and  imperfect,  and  though  employed  only  on 
light  and  trivial  matters,  is  an  inquiry  generally  productive  of  satis- 
faction and  delight.  Here  we  may  contemplate  poetry  in  its  very 
beginning  ;  not  so  much  the  offspring  of  human  genius,  as  an  ema- 
nation from  heaven  ;  not  gradually  increasing  by  small  accessions, 
but  from  its  birth  possessing  a  certain  maturity  both  of  beauty  and 
strength  ;  not  administering  to  trifling  passions,  and  offering  its  deli- 
cious incense  at  the  shrine  of  vanity,  but  the  priestess  of  divine 
truth,  the  internunciate  between  earth  and  heaven.  For  this  was 
the  first  and  peculiar  office  of  poetry,  on  the  one  hand  to  commend 
to  the  Almighty  the  prayers  and  thanksgivings  of  his  creatures,  and 
to  celebrate  his  praises  ; — and  on  the  other,  to  display  to  mankind 
the  mysteries  of  the  divine  will,  and  the  predictions  of  future  events ; 
the  best  and  noblest  of  all  employments.  It  is  to  this  observation, 
indeed,  that  I  would  particularly  point  your  attention  ;  for  it  is  plain 
from  the  general  tenour  of  the  sacred  volume,  that  the  indications  of 
future  events  have  been,  almost  without  exception,  revealed  in  num- 
bers and  in  verse  ;  and  that  the  same  spirit  was  accustomed  to  im- 


28  THE  DESIGN  AND  ARRANGEMENT  L.ECT.  II. 

part,  by  its  own  energy,  at  once  the  presentiment  of  things,  and  to 
clothe  it  in  all  the  magnificence,  in  all  the  elegance  of  poetry,  that 
the  sublimity  of  the  style  might  consist  with  sentiments  so  infinitely 
surpassing  all  human  conception.  When  considered,  therefore,  in 
this  point  of  view,  what  is  there  of  all  which  the  most  devoted  admi- 
rers of  poetry  have  ever  written  or  fabricated  in  its  commendation, 
that  does  not  fall  greatly  short  of  the  truth  itself?  What  of  all  the 
insinuations,  which  its  bitterest  adversaries  have  objected  against  it, 
which  is  not  refuted  by  simply  contemplating  the  nature  and  design 
of  the  Hebrew  poetry  ?  Let  those  who  affect  to  despise  the  Muses, 
cease  to  attempt,  for  the  vices  of  a  few,  who  may  abuse  the  best  of 
things,  to  bring  into  disrepute  a  most  laudable  talent.  Let  them 
cease  to  speak  of  that  art  as  light  or  trifling  in  itself,  to  accuse  it  as 
profane  or  impious  ;  that  art,  which  has  been  conceded  to  man  by 
the  favour  of  his  Creator,  and  for  the  most  sacred  purposes  ;  that 
art,  consecrated  by  the  authority  of  God  himself,  and  by  his  example 
in  his  most  august  ministrations. 

Whether  the  Greeks  originally  derived  their  poetry  from  the 
fountains  of  nature,  or  received  it  through  a  different  channel  from 
a  remoter  source,  appears  a  question  of  little  importance,  and  not  ea- 
sy to  be  determined.  Thus  far,  however,  is  evident,  that  an  opin- 
ion was  prevalent  in  Greece  concerning  the  nature  and  origin  of 
etry,  which  appears  most  groundless  and  absurd,  if  we  contemplate 
only  the  poetry  of  Greece,  though  truly  and  justly  applicable  to  tha 
of  the  Hebrews.  They  considered  poetry  as  something  sacred  an 
I  celestial,  not  produced  by  human  art  or  genius,  but  altogether  a  di- 
/  vine  gift.  Among  them,  therefore,  poets  were  accounted  sacred, 
the  ambassadors  of  heaven,  men  favoured  with  an  immediate  inte 
course  and  familiarity  with  the  gods.  The  mysteries  and  ceremo- 
nies of  their  religion,  and  the  worship  of  their  deities,  were  all  pe 
formed  in  verse  ;  and  the  most  ancient  of  their  compositions,  thei 
oracles,  always  consisted  of  numbers.  This  circumstance,  I  mu 
add,  rendered  them  not  only  more  sublime,  but  more  deserving  o 
\  credit  in  the  eyes  of  the  common  people  ;  for  they  conceived  it 
\  equally  the  effect  of  divine  inspiration  to  foresee  events,  and  to  ex- 
press  them  in  extemporaneous  verse.  Thus  they  seem  to  have  re- 
tained some  traces  of  an  opinion  impressed  upon  the  minds  of  men 
in  the  very  earliest  ages  concerning  the  true  and  ancient  poetry, 
even  after  they  had  lost  the  reality  itself,  and  when  religion  and  poe- 
etry  had,  by  the  licentiousness  of  fiction,,  reciprocally  corrupted  each 
other.  (B) 


.  II.  OF  THESE  LECTURES.  29 

Since,  therefore,  in  the  sacred  writings  the  only  specimens  of 
the  primeval  and  genuine  poetry  are  to  be  found,  and  since  they  are 
not  less  venerable  for  their  antiquity  than  fqr  their  divine  original,  I 
conceived  it  my  duty  in  the  first  place  to  investigate  the  nature  of 
these  writings,  as  far  as  might  be  consistent  with  the  design  of  this 
institution  :  in  other  words,  it  is  not  my  intention  to  expound  to  the 
student  of  theology  the  oracles  of  divine  truth  ;  but  to  recommend 
to  the  notice  of  the  youth  who  is  addicted  to  the  politer  sciences, 
and  studious  of  the  elegancies  of  composition,  some  of  the  first  and 
choicest  specimens  of  poetic  taste.  The  difficulty  of  the  undertak- 
ing ought  probably  to  have  discouraged  me  from  the  attempt ;  yet 
with  you,  gentlemen,  I  trust  my  temerity  will  find  this  excuse,  name- 
ly, that  I  have  undertaken  a  subject  the  most  noble  in  itself,  and  the 
best  adapted  to  the  circumstances  of  my  office.  I  trust  that  you 
will  allow  me  at  least  the  merit  of  distinguishing  what  was  most  wor- 
thy of  this  place  and  this  assembly  ;  though  perhaps  I  have  too  rash- 
ly engaged,  without  a  due  consideration  of  my  own  abilities. 

In  this  disquisition  it  is  my  intention  to  pursue  that  track  which 
the  nature  of  the  subject  seems  to  require.  Three  points  are  to  be 
considered  in  every  poem  :  First,  the  argument  or  matter,  and  the 
manner  of  treating  it ;  what  disposition,  what  order,  and  what  general 
form  is  adapted  to  each  species  of  composition  :  Secondly,  the  elo- 
cution and  style  ;  in  which  are  comprehended  lively  and  elevated  sen- 
timents, splendour  and  perspicuity  of  arrangement,  beauty  and  va- 
riety of  imagery,  and  strength  and  elegance  of  diction  :  Lastly,  the 
harmony  of  the  verse,  or  numbers,  is  to  be  considered  ;  not  only  as  in- 
tended to  captivate  the  ear,  but  as  adapted  to  the  subject,  and  expres- 
sive of  it,  and  as  calculated  to  excite  corresponding  emotions  in  the 
soul.  We  shall  now  consider  what  is  to  be  performed  in  each  of 
these  departments,  and  how  far  we  may  with  safety,  and  with  any 
prospect  of  advantage,  engage  in  a  critical  examination  of  the  He- 
brew poetry. 

With  respect  to  the  nature  of  the  versification  (if  I  may  be  allow- 
ed to  reverse  my  own  arrangement,  and  to  speak  of  that  first,  which 
constituted  the  last  division  of  my  subject)  I  fear  that  little  can  be 
produced  to  your  satisfaction  or  my  own ;  since  it  is  manifest  not 
only  from  the  unsuccessful  endeavours  of  the  most  learned  men,  but 
from  the  nature  of  the  thing  itself,  that  scarcely  any  real  knowledge 
of  the  Hebrew  versification  is  now  to  be  attained  :  and  the  only  me- 
rit to  which  any  modern  writer  can  lay  claim,  is  that  of  distinguish- 


80  THE  DESIGN  AND  ARRANGEMENT,  ETC.  L.ECT.  II. 

ing  certain  facts  (if  any  there  be)  from  uncertain  conjecture,  and 
demonstrating  how  imperfect  our  information  must  of  necessity  be 
upon  this  topic.  Were  the  inquiry,  however,  concerning  the  He- 
brew metre  to  be  wholly  overlooked ;  yet,  since  some  vestiges  of 
verse  are  discernible,  a  few  observations  of  a  general  nature  will 
probably  occur,  which  we  shall  in  the  first  place  slightly  advert  to, 
and  afterwards,  as  occasion  serves,  particularize  and  explain. 

That  part  of  these  lectures,  on  the  other  hand,  which  treats  of 
the  style  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  will  afford  very  ample  scope  for  dis- 
quisition ;  since  it  possesses  not  only  all  the  principal  excellencies 
which  are  common  to  poetry,  but  possesses  many  also  which  are 
proper  and  peculiar  to  itself. 

In  the  remaining  part,  which  though  first  in  order  and  dignity, 
will  be  the  last  to  be  treated  of,  we  must  with  diligence,  (as  consid- 
ering the  difficulty  of  the  subject)  and  at  the  same  time  with  caution 
engage  ;  lest  while  we  wander  too  much  at  large  in  the  ample  field 
of  poetry,  we  should  imprudently  break  in  upon  the  sacred  bounda- 
ries of  theology.  It  will  be  our  business  on  this  occasion  to  distrib- 
ute the  Hebrew  poems,  according  to  their  different  species,  into  dif- 
ferent classes  ;  to  consider  in  each  what  is  most  worthy  of  attention  ; 
and  perhaps  to  compare  them  with  those  of  Greece  and  Rome,  if 
there  be  any  extant  of  the  same  kind. 


PART  I. 

OF  THE  HEBREW  METRE. 


LECTURE  III. 

THE  HEBREW  POETRY  IS  METRICAL. 

The  necessity  of  inquiring  into  the  nature  of  the  Hebrew  verse  —  The  Hebrew  poetry  proved  to 
be  metrical  from  the  alphabetical  poems,  and  from  the  equality  and  correspondence  of  the 
sentiments  ;  also  from  the  poetical  diction  —  Some  of  the  most  obvious  properties  of  the  verse 
—  The  rhythm  and  mode  of  scanning  totally  lost  :  proved  from  facts  —  The  poetical  conform- 
ation of  the  sentences—  The  Greek  and  Latin  poetry  materially  different  from  the  Hebrew, 
from  the  very  nature  of  the  languages  —  Hence  a  peculiar  property  in  the  prose  versions  of 
the  Hebrew  poetry  and  the  attempts  to  exhibit  this  poetry  in  the  verse  of  other  languages. 

ON  the  very  first  attempt  to  elucidate  the  nature  of  the  sacred 
poetry,  a  question  presents  itself  uncommonly  difficult  and  obscure, 
concerning  the  nature  of  the  Hebrew  verse.  This  question  I  would 
indeed  gladly  have  avoided,  could  I  have  abandoned  it  consistently 
with  my  design.  But  since  it  appears  essential  to  every  species  of 
poetry,  that  it  be  confined  to  numbers,  and  consist  of  some  kind  of 
verse,  (for  indeed  wanting  this,  it  would  not  only  want  its  most 
agreeable  attributes,  but  would  scarcely  deserve  the  name  of  poetry) 
in  treating  of  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews,  it  appears  absolutely  nec- 
essary to  demonstrate,  that  those  parts  at  least  of  the  Hebrew  writ- 
ings which  we  term  poetic,  are  in  a  metrical  form,  and  to  inquire 
whether  any  thing  be  certainly  known  concerning  the  nature  and 
principles  of  this  versification  or  not.  This  part  of  my  subject  there- 
fore I  undertake,  not  as  hoping  to  illustrate  it  by  any  new  observa- 
tions, but  merely  with  a  view  of  inquiring  whether  it  will  admit  of  any 
illustration  at  all.  Even  this  I  shall  attempt  with  brevity  and  cau- 
tion, as  embarked  upon  an  ocean  dishonoured  by  the  shipwreck  of 
many  eminent  persons,  and  therefore  presuming  only  to  coast  along 
the  shore. 

In  the  first  place  (notwithstanding  that  a  contrary  opinion  has 
been  supported  by  some  of  the  learned)  I  think  it  will  be  sufficiently 


32  OF  THE  HEBREW  METRE.  L.ECT.  III. 

apparent,  if  we  but  advert  to  them  a  little  more  attentively,  that  cer- 
tain of  the  Hebrew  writings  are  not  only  animated  with  the  true  po- 
etic spirit,  but  in  some  degree  confined  to  numbers.  For  there  ap- 
pear in  almost  every  part  of  them  such  marks  and  vestiges  of  verse, 
as  could  scarcely  be  expected  to  remain  in  any  language,  after  the 
sound  and  pronunciation  (as  is  the  case  with  the  Hebrew  at  present) 
were,  through  extreme  antiquity,  become  almost  totally  obsolete. 

There  existed  a  certain  kind  of  poetry  among  the  Hebrews,  prin- 
cipally intended,  it  should  seem,  for  the  assistance  of  the  memory  : 
in  which,  when  there  was  little  connexion  between  the  sentiments, 
a  sort  of  order  or  method  was  preserved,  by  the  initial  letters  of  each 
line  or  stanza  following  the  order  of  the  alphabet.  Of  this  there  are 
several  examples  extant  among  the  sacred  poems  j1  and  in  these  ex- 
amples the  verses  are  so  exactly  marked  and  defined,  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  mistake  them  for  prose  ;  and  particularly  if  we  attentively 
consider  the  verses,  and  compare  them  with  one  another,  since  they 
are  in  general  so  regularly  accommodated,  that  word  answers  to  word, 
and  almost  syllable  to  syllable.  This  being  the  case,  though  an  ap- 
peal can  scarcely  be  made  to  the  ear  on  this  occasion,  the  eye  itself 
will  distinguish  the  poetic  division  and  arrangement,  and  also  that 
some  labour  and  accuracy  has  been  employed  in  adapting  the  words 
to  the  measure. 

The  Hebrew  poetry  has  likewise  another  property  altogether  pe- 
culiar to  metrical  composition.  Writers  who  are  confined  within 
the  trammels  of  verse,  are  generally  indulged  with  the  license  of 
using  words  in  a  sense  and  manner  remote  from  their  common  accep- 
tation, and  in  some  degree  contrary  to  the  analogy  of  the  language ; 
so  that  sometimes  they  shorten  them  by  taking  from  the  number  of 
the  syllables,  and  sometimes  venture  to  add  a  syllable  for  the  sake 
of  adapting  them  to  their  immediate  purpose.  This  practice  is  not 
only  effectual  to  the  facilitating  of  the  versification,  but  also  to  the 
prevention  of  satiety  by  varying  the  sounds,  and  by  imparting  to  tl 
style  a  certain  peculiar  colouring,  which  elevates  it  above  the  lai 
guage  of  the  vulgar.  Poetry  therefore  always  makes  use  of  som< 
such  artifice,  as  accords  best  with  the  genius  of  each  language 
This  is  exemplified  particularly  in  two  respects  :  First,  in  the  use 
glosses  or  foreign  language  ;  and  secondly,  in  that  of  certain  irrej 

l  Psalm  xxv.  xxxiv.  xxxvii.  cxi.  cxii.  cxix.  cxlv.     Prov.  xxxi.  from  the  1( 
verse  to  the  end.  The  whole  of  the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah  except  the  las 
chapter. 


.  III.  OF  THE  HEBREW  METRE.  33 

ular  or  less  received  forms  of  common  words.2  The  extreme  liberty 
which  the  Greeks  allowed  themselves  in  these  respects,  is  remarka- 
ble ;  and  their  language,  beyond  every  other,  because  of  the  variety 
and  copiousness  of  the  different  dialects,  which  prevailed  in  the  sev- 
eral states  of  Greece,  was  peculiarly  favourable  to  it.  Next  to  them 
none  perhaps  have  admitted  these  liberties  more  freely  than  the  He- 
brews, who  not  only  by  the  use  of  glosses,  but  by  that  of  anomalous 
language,  and  chiefly  of  certain  particles  peculiar  to  metrical  com- 
position, and  added  frequently  at  the  end  of  words,  have  so  varied 
their  style,  as  to  form  to  themselves  a  distinct  poetical  dialect.  Thus 
far,  therefore,  I  think  we  may  with  safety  affirm,  that  the  Hebrew 
poetry  is  metrical. (A)  One  or  two  of  the  peculiarities  also  of  their  ver- 
sification it  may  be  proper  to  remark,  which,  as  they  are  very  obser- 
vable in  those  poems,  in  which  the  verses  are  denned  by  the  initial 
letters,  may  at  least ,  be  reasonably  conjectured  of  the  rest.  The 
first  of  these  is,  that  the  verses  are  very  unequal  in  length  ;  the  short- 
est consisting  of  six  or  seven  syllables  ;  the  longest  extending  to  about 
twice  that  number  ;  the  same  poem  is,  however,  generally  continued 
throughout  in  verses  not  very  unequal  to  each  other.  I  must  also 
observe,  that  the  close  of  the  verse  generally  falls  where  the  members 
of  the  sentences  are  divided. 

As  to  the  real  quantity,  the  rhythm,  or  modulation,  these  from 
the  present  state  of  the  language  seem  to  be  altogether  unknown, 
and  even  to  admit  of  no  investigation  by  human  art  or  industry.  It 
is  indeed  evident,  that  the  true  Hebrew  pronunciation  is  totally  lost. 
The  rules  concerning  it,  which  were  devised  by  the  modern  Jews 
many  ages  after  the  language  of  their  ancestors  had  fallen  into  dis- 
use, have  been  long  since  suspected  by  the  learned  to  be  destitute 
of  authority  and  truth  :  for  if  in  reality  the  Hebrew  language  is  to  be 
conformed  to  the  positions  of  these  men,  we  must  be  under  the  ne- 
cessity of  confessing,  not  only,  what  we  at  present  experience,  that 
the  Hebrew  poetry  possesses  no  remains  of  sweetness  or  harmony, 
but  that  it  never  was  possessed  of  any.  The  truth  is,  it  was  neither 
possible  for  them  to  recal  the  true  pronunciation  of  a  language  long 
since  obsolete,  and  to  institute  afresh  the  rules  of  orthoepy  ;  nor  can 
any  person  in  the  persent  age  so  much  as  hope  to  effect  any  thing  to 
the  purpose  by  the  aid  of  conjecture,  in  a  matter  so  remote  from  our 
senses,  and  so  involved  in  obscurity.  In  this  respect,  indeed,  the 
delicacy  of  all  languages  is  most  remarkable.  After  they  cease  to 

2  See  Aristot.  Poet.  2. 


34  OF  THE  HEBREW  METRE.  L.ECT.  III. 

be  spoken,  they  are  still  significant  of  some  sound  ;  but  that  in  the 
mouth  of  a  stranger  becomes  most  dissonant  and  barbarous  :  the  vi- 
tal grace  is  wanting,  the  native  sweetness  is  gone,  the  colour  of  pri- 
meval beauty  is  faded  and  decayed.  The  Greek  and  Latin  doubt- 
less have  now  lost  much  of  their  pristine  and  native  sweetness ;  and 
as  they  are  spoken,  the  pronunciation  is  different  in  different  nations, 
but  every  where  barbarous,  and  such  as  Attic  or  Roman  ears  would 
not  have  been  able  to  endure.  In  these,  however,  the  rhythm  or 
quantity  remains,  each  retains  its  peculiar  numbers,  and  the  versifi- 
cation is  distinct :  but  the  state  of  the  Hebrew  is  far  more  unfavour- 
able, which,  destitute  of  vowel  sounds,  has  remained  altogether  si- 
lent (if  I  may  use  the  expression)  incapable  of  utterance  upwards  of 
two  thousand  years.  Thus,  not  so  much  as  the  number  of  syllables, 
of  which  each  word  consisted,  could  with  any  certainty  be  defined, 
much  less  the  length  or  quantity  of  the  syllables  :  (B)  and  since  the  reg- 
ulation of  the  metre  of  any  language  must  depend  upon  two  particu- 
|  lars,  I  mean  the  number  and  the  length  of  the  syllables,  the  knowl- 
edge of  which  is  utterly  unattainable  in  the  Hebrew,  he  who  attempts 
to  restore  the  true  and  genuine  Hebrew  versification,  erects  an  edifice 
without  a  foundation.  To  some  of  those  indeed  who  have  laboured 
in  this  matter,  thus  much  of  merit  is  to  be  allowed  ;  that  they  ren- 
dered the  Hebrew  poetry,  which  formerly  sounded  uncommonly 
harsh  and  barbarous,  in  some  degree  softer  and  more  polished ;  they 
indeed  furnished  it  with  a  sort  of  versification,  and  metrical  arrange- 
ment, when  baffled  in  their  attempts  to  discover  the  real.  That  we 
are  justified  in  attributing  to  them  any  thing  more  than  this,  is  nei- 
ther apparent  from  the  nature  of  the  thing,  nor  from  the  arguments 
with  which  they  attempt  to  defend  their  conjectures.3  Their  endeav- 
ours in  truth  would  rather  tend  to  supersede  all  inquiry  on  a  subject 
which  the  most  learned  and  ingenious  have  investigated  in  vain ;  and 
induce  us  to  relinquish  as  lost,  what  we  see  cannot  be  retrieved. 

But  although  nothing  certain  can  be  defined  concerning  the  me- 
tre of  the  particular  verses,  there  is  yet  another  artifice  of  poetry  to 
be  remarked  of  them  when  in  a  collective  state,  when  several  of 
them  are  taken  together,  j  In  the  Hebrew  poetry,  as  I  before  remark- 
ed, there  may  be  observed  a  certain  conformation  of  the  sentences, 
the  nature  of  which  is,  that  a  complete  sense  is  almost  equally  infu- 
sed into  every  component  part,  and  that  every  member  constitutes 
an  entire  verse.  So  that  as  the  poems  divide  themselves  in  a  man- 


3  See  the  brief  confutation  of  Bishop  Hare's  Hebrew  Metres. 


.  III.  OF  THE  HEBREW  METRE.  35 

ner  spontaneously  into  periods,  for  the  most  part  equal ;  so  the  peri- 
ods themselves  are  divided  into  verses,  most  commonly  couplets, 
though  frequently  of  greater  length.  This  is  chiefly  observable  in 
those  passages,  which  frequently  occur  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  in 
which  they  treat  one  subject  in  many  different  ways,  and  dwell  upon 
the  same  sentiment;  when  they  express  the  same  thing  in  different 
words,  or  different  things  in  a  similar  form  of  words ;  when  equals 
refer  to  equals,  and  opposites  to  opposites :  and  since  this  artifice  of 
composition  seldom  fails  to  produce  even  in  prose  an  agreeable  and 
measured  cadence,  we  can  scarcely  doubt  that  it  must  have  imparted 
to  their  poetry,  were  we  masters  of  the  versification,  an  exquisite  de- 
gree of  beauty  and  grace.  In  this  circumstance,  therefore,  which 
is  common  to  most  of  tlie  Hebrew  poems,  we  find,  if  not  a  rule  and 
principle,  at  least  a  characteristic  of  the  sacred  poetry :  insomuch 
that  in  that  language  the  word  -n£T£  (or  Psalm)  according  to  its  et- 
ymology, is  expressive  of  a  composition  cut  or  divided,  in  a  peculiar 
manner,  into  short  and  equal  sentences,  (c) 

The  nature  of  the  Greek  and  Latin  poetry  is  in  this  respect  direct^ 
ly  opposite  ;  and  that  in  conformity  to  the  genius  of  the  different  lan- 
guages. For  the  Greek,  beyond  every  other  language,  (and  the  Lat- 
in next  to  it)  is  copious,  flowing  and  harmonious,  possessed  of  a  great 
variety  of  measures,  of  which  the  impression  is  so  definite,  the  effects 
so  striking,  that  if  you  should  recite  some  lame  and  imperfect  portion  of 
a  verse  or  even  enunciate  hastily  several  verses  in  a  breath,  the  num- 
bers would  nevertheless  be  clearly  discernible  :  so  that  in  these  every 
variety  essential  to  poetry  and  verse  may  be  provided  for  almost  at 
pleasure,  without  the  smallest  injury  to  the  different  metres.  But 
in  the  Hebrew  language  the  whole  economy  is  different.  Its  form  is 
simple  above  every  other ;  the  radical  words  are  uniform,  and  re- 
semble each  other  almost  exactly  ;  nor  are  the  inflexions  numerous, 
or  materially  different :  whence  we  may  readily  understand,  that  its 
metres  are  neither  complex,  nor  capable  of  much  variety ;  but  rather 
simple,  grave,  temperate  ;  less  adapted  to  fluency  than  dignity  and 
force  :  so  that  possibly  they  found  it  necessary  to  distinguish  the  ex- 
tent of  the  verse  by  the  conclusion  of  the  sentence,  lest  the  lines  by 
running  into  each  other,  should  become  altogether  implicated  and 
confused.  (D) 

Two  observations  occur  in  this  place  worthy  of  attention,  and 
arise  naturally  from  what  has  been  said.  The  first  is,  that  a  poem 
translated  literally  from  the  Hebrew  into  the  prose  of  any  other  Ian- 


26  THE  DESIGN  AND  ARRANGEMENT  LfiCT.  II. 

descend  to  matters  of  inferior  importance.  I  undertake  this  office, 
however,  with  the  most  perfect  conviction,  that  not  only  from  a  re- 
gard to  duty  it  ought  to  be  executed  with  diligence  ;  but  from  the 
respectability  of  that  body,  at  whose  command  it  is  undertaken,  it 
ought  to  be  executed  with  honour  and  reputation  ;  nor  is  it  merely 
to  be  considered  what  the  intent  of  the  institution  and  the  improve- 
ment of  the  students  may  require,  but  what  will  be  consistent  with 
the  dignity  of  this  university.  For  since  the  university,  when  it  gave 
its  sanction  to  this  species  of  discipline  by  a  special  degree,  recom- 
mended the  study  of  poetry,  particularly  because  it  might  conduce 
to  the  improvement  of  the  more  important  sciences,  as  well  sacred 
as  profane,3  nothing  could  certainly  appear  more  useful  in  itself,  or 
more  agreeable  to  the  purpose  of  this  institution,  and  the  design  of 
its  learned  patrons,  than  to  treat  of  that  species  of  poetry,  which  con- 
stitutes so,  considerable  a  part  of  sacred  literature,  and  excels  all  oth- 
er poetry,  not  less  in  the  sublimity  of  the  style,  than  in  the  dignity 
of  the  subject. 

It  would  not  be  easy,  indeed,  to  assign  a  reason,  why  the  wri- 
tings of  Homer,  of  Pindar,  and  of  Horace,  should  engross  our  atten- 
tion and  monopolize  our  praise,  while  those  of  Moses,  of  David  and 
Isaiah  pass  totally  unregarded.  Shall  we  suppose  that  the  subject  is 
not  adapted  to  a  seminary,  in  which  sacred  literature  has  ever  main- 
tained a  precedence  ?  Shall  we  say,  that  it  is  foreign  to  this  assem- 
bly of  promising  youth,  of  whom  the  greater  part  have  consecrated 
the  best  portion  of  their  time  and  labour  to  the  same  department  of 
learning  ?  Or  must  we  conclude,  that  the  writings  of  those  men, 
who  have  accomplished  only  as  much  as  human  genius  and  ability 
could  accomplish,  should  be  reduced  to  method  and  theory ;  but  that 
those  which  boast  a  much  higher  origin,  and  are  justly  attributed  to 
the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  may  be  considered  as  indeed  illus- 
trious by  their  native  force  and  beauty,  but  not  as  conformable  to 
the  principles  of  science,  nor  to  be  circumscribed  by  any  rules  of 
art  ?  It  is  indeed  most  true,  that  sacred  poetry,  if  we  contemplate 
its  origin  alone,  is  far  superior  to  both  nature  and  art ;  but  if  we 
\would  rightly  estimate-  its  excellencies,  that  is,  if  we  wish  to  under- 
stand its  power  in  exciting  the  human  affections,  we  must  have  re- 
Course  to  both :  for  we  must  consider  what  those  affections  are,  and 
by  what  means  they  are  to  be  excited.  Moreover,  as  in  all  other 
branches  of  science,  so  in  poetry,  art  or  theory  consists  in  a  certain 


3  See  the  statute  relating  to  the  poetic  lecture. 


LECT.  II.  OF  THESE  LECTURES.  27 

"knowledge  derived  from  the  careful  observation  of  nature,  and  con- 
firmed by  practice  and  experience  ;  for  men  of  learning  having  re- 
marked in  things  what  was  graceful,  what  was  fit,  what  was  condu- 
cive to  the  attainment  of  certain  ends,  they  digested  such  discoveries 
as  had  been  casually  made,  and  reduced  them  to  an  established  or- 
der or  method  :  whence  it  is  evident,  that  art  deduces  its  origin  from 
the  works  of  genius,  not  that  genius  has  been  formed  or  directed  by 
art ;  and  that  it  is  properly  applied  in  illustrating  the  works  of  even 
those  writers,  who  were  either  ignorant  of  its  rules,  or  inattentive  to 
them.  Since  then  it  is  the  purpose  of  sacred  poetry  to  form  the  hu- 
man mind  to  the  constant  habit  of  true  virtue  and  piety,  and  to  ex- 
cite the  more  ardent  affections  of  the  soul,  in  order  to  direct  them  to 
their  proper  end  ;  whoever  has  a  clear  insight  into  the  instruments, 
the  machinery  as  it  were,  by  which  this  end  is  effected,  will  certain- 
ly contribute  not  a  little  to  the  improvement  of  the  critical  art.  Now, 
although  it  be  scarcely  possible  to  penetrate  to  the  fountains  of  this 
celestial  Nile,  yet  it  may  surely  be  allowed  us  to  pursue  the  mean- 
ders of  the  stream,  to  mark  the  flux  and  reflux  of  its  waters,  and 
even  to  conduct  a  few  rivulets  into  the  adjacent  plains. (A) 

The  sacred  poetry  is  undoubtedly  entitled  to  the  first  rank  in 
this  school,  since  from  it  we  are  to  learn  both  the  origin  of  the  art, 
and  how  to  estimate  its  excellence.  The  commencement  of  other 
arts,  however  rude  and  imperfect,  and  though  employed  only  on 
light  and  trivial  matters,  is  an  inquiry  generally  productive  of  satis- 
faction and  delight.  Here  we  may  contemplate  poetry  in  its  very  \ 
beginning  ;  not  so  much  the  offspring  of  human  genius,  as  an  ema- 
nation from  heaven  ;  not  gradually  increasing  by  small  accessions, 
but  from  its  birth  possessing  a  certain  maturity  both  of  beauty  and 
strength  ;  not  administering  to  trifling  passions,  and  offering  its  deli- 
cious incense  at  the  shrine  of  vanity,  but  the  priestess  of  divine 
-truth,  the  internunciate  between  earth  and  heaven.  For  this  was 
the  first  and  peculiar  office  of  poetry.,  on  the  one  hand  to  commend 
to  the  Almighty  the  prayers  and  thanksgivings  of  his  creatures,  and 
to  celebrate  his  praises  ; — and  on  the  other,  to  display  to  mankind 
the  mysteries  of  the  divine  will,  and  the  predictions  of  future  events ; 
the  best  and  noblest  of  all  employments.  It  is  to  this  observation, 
indeed,  that  I  would  particularly  point  your  attention  ;  for  it  is  plain 
from  the  general  tenour  of  the  sacred  volume,  that  the  indications  of 
future  events  have  been,  almost  without  exception,  revealed  in  num- 
bers and  in  verse  ;  and  that  the  same  spirit  was  accustomed  to  im- 


38  OP  THE  PARABOLIC  AND  L.ECT.  IV. 

necessity  of  applying  to  the  sacred  poetry  for  examples  of  these,  ev- 
ery composition,  however  trite  and  barren,  abounding  in  them. 
Of  these,  therefore,  we  shall  be  sparing,  and  use  them  not  as  freely 
as  we  might,  but  as  much  only  as  shall  appear  absolutely  necessary. 
For  at  present  we  are  not  so  much  to  inquire  what  are  the  general 
principles  of  poetical  composition,  as  what  are  the  peculiar  marks  and 
characters  of  the  Hebrew  poetry.  Let  us  consider,  therefore,  whether 
the  literature  of  the  Hebrews  will  not  suggest  some  general  term, 
which  will  give  us  an  opportunity  of  discussing  the  subject,  so  as  to 
bring  it  under  one  comprehensive  view  ;  and  which,  being  divided 
according  to  its  constituent  parts,  will  prescribe  a  proper  order  and 
limit  to  our  disquisition. 

A  poem  is  called  in  Hebrew  *"i  173  7 73,  that  is,  as  was  before  re- 
marked, a  short  composition  cut  and  divided  into  distinct  parts. 
It  is  thus  called  in  reference  to  the  verse  and  numbers.  Again,  a 
poem  is  called,  in  reference  to  the  diction  and  sentiments,  bftto  J1 
which  I  take  to  be  the  word  properly  expressive  of  the  poetical  style. 
Many  translators  render  it  by  the  word  parable,  which  in  some  res- 
pects is  not  improper,  though  it  scarcely  comprehends  the  full  com- 
pass of  the  Hebrew  expression  ;  for  if  we  investigate  its  full  and  pro- 
per force,  we  shall  find  that  it  includes  three  forms  or  modes  of  speech, 
the  sententious,  the  figurative,  and  the  sublime.  (A)  To  these  as  parts 
or  divisions  of  the  general  subject,  may  be  refered  whatever  occurs 
concerning  the  parabolical  or  poetical  style  of  the  Hebrews  :  but  the 
reason  of  this  arrangement  will  perhaps  be  better  understood,  if  we 
premise  a  short  inquiry  into  the  origin  and  early  use  of  this  style  of 
composition. 

The  origin  and  first  use  of  poetical  language  are  undoubtedly  to 
be  traced  into  the  vehement  affections  of  the  mind.  For  what  is 
meant  by  that  singular  frenzy  of  poets,  which  the  Greeks,  ascribing  to 
divine  inspiration,  distinguished  by  the  appellation  of  enthusiasm,  but 
a  style  and  expression  directly  prompted  by  nature  itself,  and  exhib- 
iting the  true  and  express  image  of  a  mind  violently  agitated  ? 
When,  as  it  were,  the  secret  avenues,  the  interior  recesses  of  the 
soul  are  thrown  open  ;  when  the  inmost  conceptions  are  displayed, 
rushing  together  in  one  turbid  stream,  without  order  or  connexion. 
Hence  sudden  exclamations,  frequent  interrogations,  apostrophes 
even  to  inanimate  objects  :  for  to  those,  who  are  violently  agitated 

1  NUMB.  xxi.  27.  xxiii.  and  xxiv.  frequently.     MIC.  ii.  4.    IsAi-joy.  4.  PSAL. 
xlix.  5.  Ixxviii.  2.  JOB  xxvii.  1.  xxix.  1. 


LECT.  IV.  SENTENTIOUS  STYLE.  39 

themselves,  the  universal  nature  of  things  seems  under  a  necessity  of  .X 
being  affected  with  similar  emotions.  Every  impulse  of  the  mind, 
however,  has  not  only  a  peculiar  style  and  expression,  but  a  certain 
tone  of  voice  and  a  certain  gesture  of  the  body  adapted  to  it :  some 
indeed,  not  satisfied  with  that  expression  which  language  affords, 
have  added  to  it  dancing  and  song  ;  and  as  we  know  there  existed 
in  the  first  ages  a  very  strict  connexion  between  these  arts  and  that 
of  poetry,  we  may  possibly  be  indebted  to  them  for  the  accurately  ad- 
measured verses  and  feet,  to  the  end  that  the  modulation  of  the  lan- 
guage might  accord  with  the  music  of  the  voice,  and  the  motion  of 
the  body.  (B) 

Poetry,  in  this  its  rude  origin  and  commencement,  being  derived 
from  nature,  was  in  time  improved  by  art,  and  applied  to  the  purpo- 
ses of  utility  and  delight.  For  as  it  owed  its  birth  to  the  affections 
of  the  mind,  and  had  availed  itself  of  the  assistance  of  harmony,  it 
was  found,  on  account  of  the  exact  and  vivid  delineation  of  the  objects 
which  it  described,  to  be  excellently  adapted  to  the  exciting  of  every 
internal  emotion,  and  making  a  more  forcible  impression  upon  the 
mind  than  abstract  reasoning  could  possibly  effect ;  it  was  found  ca- 
pable of  interesting  and  affecting  the  senses  and  passions,  of  captiva- 
ting the  ear,  of  directing  the  perception  to  the  minutest  circumstan- 
ces, and  of  assisting  the  memory  in  the  retention  of  them.  Whatev- 
er therefore  deserved  to  be  generally  known  and  accurately  remem- 
bered, was  (by  those  men,  who  on  this  very  account  were  denomina- 
ted wise)  (c)  adorned  with  a  jocund  and  captivating  style,  illuminated 
with  the  varied  and  splendid  colouring  of  language,  and  moulded  in- 
to sentences  comprehensive,  pointed  and  harmonious.  It  became 
the  peculiar  province  of  poetry  to  depict  the  great,  the  beautiful,  the 
becoming,  the  virtuous  ;  to  embellish  and  recommend  the  precepts  of 
religion  and  virtue,  to  transmit  to  posterity  excellent  and  sublime  ac- 
tions and  sayings  ;  to  celebrate  the  works  of  the  Deity,  his  benefi- 
cence, his  wisdom  ;  to  record  the  memorials  of  the  past,  and  the  pre- 
dictions of  the  future.  In  each  of  these  departments  poetry  was  of 
singular  utility,  since  before  any  characters  expressive  of  sounds 
were  invented,  at  least  before  they  were  commonly  received,  and  ap- 
plied to  general  use,  it  seems  to  have  afforded  the  only  means  of 
preserving  the  rude  science  of  the  early  times  ;  and  in  this  respect,  to 
have  rendered  the  want  of  letters  more  tolerable  :  it  seems  also  to 
have  acted  the  part  of  a  public  herald,  by  whose  voice  each  mem- 
orable transaction  of  antiquity  was  proclaimed,  and  transmitted 
through  different  ages  and  nations. 


40  OP  THE  PARABOLIC  AND  L.ECT.  IV. 

Such  appears  by  the  testimony  of  authors  to  have  been  the  un- 
doubted origin  of  poetry  among  heathen  nations.  It  is  evident  that 
Greece  for  several  successive  ages  was  possessed  of  no  records  but 
the  poetic  :  for  the  first  who  published  a  prose  oration,  was  Pherecy- 
des,  a  man  of  the  isle  of  Syrus,  and  contemporary  with  king  Cyrus, 
who  lived  some  ages  posterior  to  that  of  Homer  and  Hesiod  :  some- 
what after  that  time,  Cadmus  the  Milesian  began  to  compose  history. 
The  laws  themselves  were  metrical,  and  adapted  to  certain  musical 
notes :  such  were  the  laws  of  Charondas,  which  were  sung  at  the 
banquets  of  the  Athenians  :  such  were  those  which  were  delivered 
by  the  Cretans  to  the  ingenuous  youth  to  be  learned  by  rote,  with 
accompaniments  of  musical  melody,  in  order  that  by  the  enchant- 
ment of  harmony,  the  sentiments  might  be  more  forcibly  impressed 
upon  their  memories.  Hence  certain  poems  were  denominated 
vouoi,  which  implied  convivial  or  banqueting  songs,  as  is  re- 
marked by  Aristotle  ;  who  adds,  that  the  same  custom  of  chanting 
the  laws  to  njusic,  existed  even  in  his  own  time  among  the  Agathyr- 
si.  If  we  may  credit  Strabo,  the  Turdetani,  a  people  of  Spain,  had 
laws  in  verse.  But  the  Germans,  as  Tacitus  positively  asserts,  had 
no  records  or  annals  but  the  traditional  poems,  in  which  they  cele- 
brated the  heroic  exploits  of  their  ancestors.  In  the  same  manner, 
and  on  the  same  account,  the  Persians,  the  Arabs,  and  many  of  the 
most  ancient  of  the  Eastern  nations,  preserved  in  verse  their  history 
and  politics,  as  well  as  the  principles  of  religion  and  morals  :  Thus  all 
science  human  and  divine  was  deposited  in  the  treasury  of  the  Muses, 
and  thither  it  was  necessary  on  every  occasion  to  resort.  The  only 
mode  of  instruction,  indeed,  adapted  to  human  nature  in  an  uncivil- 
ized state,  when  the  knowledge  of  letters  was  very  little,  if  at  all,  dif- 
fused, must  be  that  which  is  calculated  to  captivate  the  ear  and  the 
passions,  which  assists  the  memory,  which  is  not  to  be  delivered  in- 
to the  hand,  but  infused  into  the  mind  and  heart.  (D)  2 

That  the  case  was  the  same  among  the  Hebrews  ;  that  poetry 
was  both  anciently  and  generally  known  and  practised  by  them,  ap- 
pears highly  probable,  as  well  from  the  analogy  of  things,  as  from 
some  vestiges  of  poetic  language  extant  in  the  writings  of  Moses. 
The  first  instance  occurs  in  one  of  the  most  remote  periods  of  the 

2  Compare  Strabo,  Geog.  Lib  I.  and  III.  Pliny,  Nat.  Hist.  Lib.  VII.  56. 
V.  29.  Isidor.  Hispal.  Orig.  Lib.  I.  27.  Athenaeus,  Lib.  XIV.  3.  Aelian,  Var. 
Hist.  Lib.  II.  39.  Aristotle,  Prob.  XIX.  2.28.  Tacitus,  Germ.  II.  Chardin's 
Travels,  Vol.  II.  c.  XIV.  Pococke,  Specim.  Hist.  Arab.  p.  158. 


.  IV.  SENTENTIOUS  STYLE.  41 

Mosaic  history,  I  mean  the  address  of  Lamech  to  his  wives,  which 
is  indeed  but  ill  understood  in  general,  because  the  occasion  of  itl 
is  very  obscurely  intimated  :  nevertheless,  if  we  consider  the  apt  con-! 
struction  of  the  words,  the  exact  distribution  of  the  period  into  three 
distichs,  and  the  two  parallel,  and  as  it  were  corresponding  senti-i 
ments  in  each  distich  ;  I  apprehend  it  will  easily  be  acknowledged 
as  an  indubitable  specimen  of  the  poetry  of  the  first  ages  : 

"  Hadah  et  Sillah,  audite  vocem  meam ; 

"  Uxores  Lamechi,  auscultate  eloquium  meum  : 

"  Quod  virum  occidi  in  vulnus  meum, 

"  Et  puerum  in  livorem  meum : 

"  Quia  septempliciter  vindicabitur  Cain, 

"  Et  Lamech  septuagesies  septies."3 

Another  example,  which  I  shall  point  out  to  you,  appears  no  less 
to  bear  the  genuine  marks  of  poetry  than  the  former,  and  that  is  the 
execration  of  Noah  upon  Ham  ;  with  the  magnificent  predictions  of 
prosperity  to  his  two  brothers,  to  Shem  in  particular,  and  the  ardent 
breathings  of  his  soul  for  their  future  happiness  :  these  are  expressed 
in  three  equal  divisions  of  verses,  concluding  with  an  indignant  re- 
petition of  One  of  the  preceding  lines  : 

"  Maledictus  Chanaan  ! 

"  Servus  servorum  erit  fratribus  suis. 

"  Benedictus  lehova  Deus  Shemi ! 

"  Et  sit  Chanaan  servus  illis. 

"  Dilatet  Deus  lapheturn, 

"  Et  habitet  in  tentoriis  Shemi ; 

"  Et  sit  Chanaan  servus  illis."4 

The  inspired  benedictions  of  the  patriarchs  Isaac  and  Jacob  are  alto- 
gether of  the  same  kind  :5  and  the  great  importance  of  these  prophe- 
cies, not  only  to  the  destiny  of  the  people  of  Israel,  but  to  that  of  the 
whole  human  race,  renders  it  highly  probable  that  they  were  extant 
in  this  form  before  the  time  of  Moses  ;  and  that  they  were  afterwards 
committed  to  writing  by  the  inspired  historian,  exactly  as  he  had  re- 
ceived them  from  his  ancestors,  without  presuming  to  bestow  on 
these  sacred  oracles  any  adventitious  ornaments  or  poetical  colour- 
ing. 

The  matter  will  appear  yet  clearer,  if  we  advert  to  some  other 
verses,  a  little  different  in  kind,  to  which  the  same  historian  appeals 
(as  well  known  and  popular)  in  testimony  of  the  truth  of  his  narra- 
tion. Thus,  when  he  relates  the  first  incursion  of  the  Israelites  in- 

3  Gen.  iv.  23,  24.         4  Gen.  ix.  25, 27.         5  Gen.  xxvii.  27, 29, 39,  40.  xlix. 
6 


4*/i  OF  THE  PARABOLIC  AND  L.ECT.  IV. 

to  the  country  of  the  Amorites,  in  order  to  mark  more  precisely  the 
boundaries  of  that  state,  and  to  explain  more  satisfactorily  the  nature 
of  the  victories  not  long  before  achieved  over  the  Moabites,  he  cites 
two  fragments  of  poems ;  the  one  from  the  book  of  the  wars  of  Je- 
hovah,6 the  other  from  the  sayings  ('ff^^O'Q)  of  those  who  spoke  in 
parables ;  that  is,  as  appears  from  the  nature  of  things,  from  some 
panegyrical  or  triumphal  poem  of  the  Amorites.  (E)  To  which  we  may 
add,  what  immediately  follow  the  prophecies  of  Balaam  the  Mesopot- 
amian,  pronounced  also  in  the  parabolic  style,  as  appears  from 
the  extreme  neatness  of  the  composition,  the  metrical  and  parallel 
sentences,  the  sublimity  of  the  language  and  sentiment,  and  the  un- 
common elegance  of  the  verse.  Hence  it  is  easy  to  collect,  that 
this  kind  of  poetry,  which  appears  perfectly  analogous  to  all  the  rest 
of  the  Hebrew  poetry  that  still  remains,  was  neither  originally  the 
production  of  Moses,  nor  peculiar  to  the  Jewish  nation,  but  that  it 
may  be  accounted  among  the  first  fruits  of  human  ingenuity,  and 
was  cultivated  by  the  Hebrews  and  other  eastern  nations  from  the 
first  ages,  as  the  recorder  of  events,  the  preceptor  of  morals,  the  histo- 
rian of  the  past,  and  prophet  of  the  future.  7(r) 

Concerning  the  utility  of  poetry,  therefore,  the  Hebrews  have 
maintained  the  same  opinion  throughout  all  ages.  This  being  always 
accounted  the  highest  commendation  of  science  and  erudition  :  "  To 
understand  a  proverb  and  the  interpretation  ;  the  words  of  the  wise 
and  their  dark  sayings  ;"8  under  which  titles  two  species  of  poetry 
seem  to  be  particularly  indicated,  different  indeed  in  many  respects, 
ret  agreeing  in  some.  The  one  I  call  didactic,  which  expresses 
some  moral  precept  in  elegant  and  pointed  verses,  often  illustrated 
>y  a  comparison  either  direct  or  implied  ;  similar  to  the  yvwpat, 
md  adages  of  the  wise  men :  the  other  was  truly  poetical, 
idorned  with  all  the  more  splendid  colouring  of  language,  magnifi- 
/cently  sublime  in  the  sentiments,  animated  by  the  most  pathetic  ex- 
'  pression,  and  diversified  and  embellished  by  figurative  diction  and 
poetical  imagery  ;  such  are  almost  all  the  remaining  productions  of 
the  prophets.  Brevity  or  conciseness  was  a  characteristic  of  each  of 
these  forms  of  composition,  and  a  degree  of  obscurity  was  not  unfre- 

6  Numb.  xxi.  14, 15.  27—30. 

7  To  the  above  examples  from  the  books  of  Moses  add  the  following  :  Gen. 
xxi.  6,  7.  xxiv.  60.  xxv.  23.  xxviii.  16, 17.     Observe  also  whether  the  answer 
of  God,  Numb.  xii.  6 — 8,  be  not  of  the  same  kind. 

8  See  Prov.  i.  6.  Wisd.  viii.  8.   Ecclus.  i.  25.  vi.  35.  xviii.  29.  xxxix.  1,2,3- 


IV.  SENTENTIOUS  STYLE.  43 

quently  attendant  upon  this  studied  brevity.  Each  consisted  of  met- 
rical sentences  ;  on  which  account  chiefly  the  poetic  and  proverbial 
language  seem  to  have  obtained  the  same  appellation  ;  and  in  these 
two  kinds  of  composition  all  knowledge  human  and  divine  was 
thought  to  be  comprised. 

The  sententious  style,  therefore,  I  define  to  be  the  primary  char-  A 
acteristic  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  as  being  the  most  conspicuous  and 
comprehensive  of  all.  For  although  that  style  seems  naturally  adap- 
ted only  to  the  didactic,  yet  it  is  found  to  pervade  the  whole  of  the 
poetry  of  the  Hebrews.  There  are  indeed  many  passages  in  the 
sacred  writings  highly  figurative,  and  infinitely  sublime ;  but  all  of 
them  manifestly  assume  a  sententious  form.  There  are  some  too, 
and  those  not  inelegant,  which  possess  little  more  of  the  characteris- 
tics of  poetry  than  the  versification,  and  that  terseness  or  adaptation 
of  the  sentences,  which  constitutes  so  important  a  part  even  of  the 
harmony  of  verse.  This  is  manifest  in  most  of  the  didactic  psalms, 
as  well  as  in  some  others,  the  matter,  order,  diction,  and  thoughts  of 
which  are  clearly  historical ;  but  the  conformation  of  the  sentences 
wholly  poetical.  There  is  indeed  so  strict  an  analogy  between  the 
structure  of  the  sentences  and  the  versification,  that  when  the  former 
chances  to  be  confused  or  obscured,  it  is  scarcely  possible  to  form  a 
conjecture  concerning  the  division  of  the  lines  or  verses,  which  is 
almost  the  only  part  of  the  Hebrew  versification  that  remains.  'It 
was  therefore  necessary,  before  I  could  explain  the  mechanism  of  the 
Hebrew  verse,  to  remark  many  particulars  which  properly  belong  to 
the  present  topic. 

The  reason  of  this  (not  to  detain  you  with  what  is  obvious  in  al- 
most every  page  of  the  sacred  poetry)  is  as  follows.     The  Hebrew  po- 
ets frequently  express  a  sentiment  with  the  utmost  brevity  and  simplic- 
ity,-illustrated  by  no  circumstances,  adorned  with  no  epithets  (which] 
in  truth  they  seldom  use  ;)  they  afterwards  call  in  the  aid  of  ornament ;  1 
they  repeat,  they  vary,  they  amplify  the  same  sentiment ;  and  add-  I 
ing  one  or  more  sentences  which  run  parallel  to  each  other,  they 
express  the  same  or  a  similar,  and  often  a~cbntrary  sentiment  in  near- 
ly the  same  form  of  words.     Of  these  three  modes  of  ornament  at 
least  they  make  the  most  frequent  use,  namely,  the  amplification  of 
the  same  ideas,  the  accumulation  of  others,  and  the  opposition  or  an- 
tithesis of  such  as  are  contrary  to  each  other ;   they  dispose  the  cor-' 
responding  sentences  in  jregular  distichs  adapted  to  each  other,  and 
of  an  equal  length,  in  which,  for  the  most  part,  things  answer  to 


44  OF  THE  PARABOLIC  STYLE.  L.ECT.  IV. 

things,  and  words  to  words,  as  the  son  of  Sirach  says  of  the  works  of 
God,  two  and  two,  one  against  the  other?  These  forms  again  are 
diversified  by  notes  of  admiration,  comparison,  negation,  and  more 
particularly  interrogation,  whence  a  singular  degree  of  force  and  ele- 
vation is  frequently  added  to  the  composition. 

Each  language  possesses  a  peculiar  genius  and  character,  on 
which  depend  the  principles  of  the  versification,  and  in  a  great  meas- 
ure the  style  or  colour  of  the  poetic  diction.  In  Hebrew  the  fre- 
quent or  rather  perpetual  splendour  of  the  sentences,  and  the  accu- 
rate recurrence  of  the  clauses,  seem  absolutely  necessary  to  distin- 
guish the  verse  :  so  that  what  in  any  other  language  would  appear 
a  superfluous  and  tiresome  repetition,  in  this  cannot  be  omitted 
without  injury  to  the  poetry.  This  excellence,  therefore,  the  sen- 
tentious style  possesses  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  that  it  necessarily 
prevents  a  prosaic  mode  of  expression,  and  always  reduces  a  com- 
position to  a  kind  of  metrical  form.  For  as  Cicero  remarks,  "  in 
certain  forms  of  expression  there  exists  such  a  degree  of  conciseness, 
that  a  sort  of  metrical  arrangement  follows  of  course.  For  when 
words  or  sentences  directly  correspond,  or  when  contraries  are  op- 
posed exactly  to  each  other,  or  even  when  words  of  a  similar  sound 
run  parallel,  the  composition  will  in  general  have  a  metrical  ca- 
(T  dence."10  It  possesses,  however,  great  force  in  other  respects,  and 
produces  several  great  and  remarkable  beauties  of  composition. 
For,  as  the  sacred  poems  derive  from  this  source  a  great  part  of 
their  elegance,  harmony,  and  splendour,  so  they  are  not  unfrequent- 
ly  indebted  to  it  for  their  sublimity  and  strength.  Frequent  and 
laconic  sentences  render  the  composition  remarkably  concise,  har- 
monious, and  animated ;  the  brevity  itself  imparts  to  it  additional 
strength,  and  being  contracted  within  a  narrower  space,  it  has  a 
more  energetic  and  pointed  effect. 

Examples  sufficient  to  evince  the  truth  of  these  remarks  will  oc- 
cur hereafter  in  the  passages  which  will  be  quoted  in  illustration  of 
other  parts  of  our  subject :  and,  in  all  probability,  on  a  future  occa- 
sion the  nature  of  my  undertaking  will  require  a  more  ample  dis- 
cussion of  this  subject.11 

9  ECCLUS.  xxxiii.  15.  10  Orator.  H  See  Lect.  XIX. 


LECTURE  T. 

OF  THE  FIGURATIVE  STYLE,  AND  ITS  DIVISIONS. 

2.  The  Figurative  Style;  to  be  treated  rather  according  to  the  genius  of  the  Hebrew  poetry 
than  according  to  the  forms  and  arrangements  of  rhetoricians. — The  definition  and  constituent 
parts  of  the  Figurative  Style,  Metaphor,  Allegory,  Comparison,  Personification.— The  rea- 
son of  this  mode  of  treating  the  subject  :  difficulties  in  reading  the  Hebrew  poetry,  which 
result  from  the  Figurative  Style  ;  how  to  be  avoided.  1.  Of  the  Metaphor,  including  a  gen- 
eral disquisition  concerning  poetic  imagery:  the  nature  of  which  is  explained;  and  four 
principal  sources  pointed  out :  Nature,  Common  Life,  Religion,  History. 

IN  my  last  lecture  I  offered  it  as  my  opinion,  that  the  Hebrew 
word  expressive  of  the  poetic  style  had  not  one  simple  and  distinct 
meaning,  but  might  commodiously  enough  be  supposed  to  admit  of 
three  constituent  parts  or  divisions  :  in  other  words,  that  it  might  im- 
ply the  sententious,  the  figurative ;  and  the  sublime.  On  the  senten- 
tious style,  its  nature,  origin,  and  effect  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  I  of- 
fered such  brief  remarks  as  occurred  to  me  at  the  time  :  and  now 
that  I  am  about  to  treat  of  the  figurative  style,  I  observe  before 
me  an  infinity  of  matter  and  an  ample  field ;  in  which,  lest  we 
should  too  freely  expatiate,  or  irregularly  wander,  the  scope  and  order 
of  our  journey,  the  outlets  of  the  road,  the  circuitous  paths,  and  the 
most  direct  avenues,  are  in  the  first  place  to  be  carefully  investigated. 
In  order  to  the  full  comprehension  also  of  those  matters  which  will 
be  treated  of  in  this  part,  for  they  are  in  some  degree  remote  from 
common  use,  it  may  not  be  improper  previously  to  explain  as  clearly 
as  possible,  and  therefore  with  some  degree  of  copiousness,  my  im- 
mediate design  ;  on  what  principles,  in  what  order  and  method,  and 
to  what  end  I  mean  to  treat  of  the  figures  which  are  chiefly  employed 
in  the  Hebrew  poetry. 

The  word  bttJtt,  in  its  most  common  acceptation,  denotes  re- 
semblance, and  is  therefore  directly  expressive  of  the  figurative  style, 
as  far  as  the  nature  of  figures  consists  in  the  substitution  of  words, 
or  rather  of  ideas,  for  those  which  they  resemble ;  which  is  the  case 
even  with  most  of  the  figures  that  have  been  remarked  by  the  rhet- 
oricians. This  definition  therefore  of  the  figurative  style,  drawn 
both  from  the  writings  of  the  Hebrews,  and  the  sense  of  the  word 


40  FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  LfiCT.  V. 

itself,  I  mean  to  follow  in  explaining  the  nature  of  their  poetry  :  and 
this  I  do  the  more  willingly,  because  it  will  enable  me  to  confine 
our  investigation  within  narrower  limits.  I  shall  also  venture  to 
omit  the  almost  innumerable  forms  of  the  Greek  rhetoricians,  who 
possessed  the  faculty  of  inventing  names  in  the  highest  perfection  ; 
I  shall  neglect  even  their  primary  distinction  between  tropes  and 
figures,1  and  their  subdivisions  of  the  figures  themselves,  denominat- 
ing some  figures  of  expression,  and  some  figures  of  sentiment.  In 
disregarding  these  distinctions,  I  might  in  my  own  justification  al- 
ledge  the  authority  of  C.  Artorius  Proculus,  who  gave  the  name  of 
figure  to  a  trope,  as  Q,uintilian  informs  us ;  and  indeed  the  example 
of  duintilian  himself.2  I  omit  them,  however,  upon  a  different 
ground ;  for  I  do  not  pretend  to  say  that  in  their  proper  place  they  are 
destitute  either  of  reality  or  use  ;  but  our  present  concern  is  not  to 
explain  the  sentiments  of  the  Greek  but  of  the  Hebrew  writers.  By 
figurative  language,  I  would  be  understood  to  mean  that,  in  which 
I  one  or  more  images  or  words  are  substituted  in  the  room  of  others, 
or  even  introduced  by  way  of  illustration  upon  the  principle  of  re- 
semblance. That  resemblance,  if  it  be  only  intimated,  and  confin- 
ed to  a  few  words,  is  called  a  Metaphor ;  if  the  figure  be  contin- 
ued, it  is  called  an  Allegory ;  if  it  be  directly  expressed  by  compar- 
ing the  ideas  together,  and  by  the  insertion  of  any  words  expressive 
of  likeness,  it  is  called  Simile  or  Comparison.  On  the  same  prin- 
ciple of  resemblance  the  Prosopopoeia,  or  Personification,  is  also 
founded,  when  a  character  and  person  is  assigned  even  to  things  inan- 
imate or  fictitious  (which  is  a  bolder  species  of  metaphor)  or  when 
a  probable  but  fictitious  speech  is  attributed  to  a  real  personage. (A) 

1  mean,  therefore,  to  treat  of  these  figures  in  the  order  just  now 
proposed ;  not  as  supposing  them  the  only  figures  made  use  of  by 
the  Hebrew  poets ;  but  in  the  first  place,  because  they  chiefly  come 
within  the  definition  of  the  parabolic  style ;  because  too  they  most 
frequently  occur  in  the  sacred  poetry,  and  constitute  some  of  its 
greatest  beauties :  insomuch  that  their  true  force  and  energy  is  in 
no  other  composition  so  apparent.     I  must  add,  that  it  will  not  be 

1  This   distinction  is  very  judiciously  laid   aside,  since  each  of  these  words 
is  but  a  partial  mode  of  expressing  the  same  thing.     A  trope  signifies  no  more 
than  the  turning  a  word  from  its  appropriate  meaning ;  and  &  figure,  an  appear- 
ance incidentally  assumed,  without  the  least  implication  of  its  being  borrowed. 
r  Henley, 

2  See  QUINT.  Lib.  IX.  I. 


.  V.  FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  47 

sufficient  to  illustrate  them  barely  by  producing  a  few  examples,  as 
if  matters  uncommon  and  abstruse  were  the  object  of  our  inquiry, 
and  not  such  as  spontaneously  occur  on  almost  every  occasion.  It 
will  be  necessary  to  proceed  still  further  if  possible ;  it  will  be  ne- 
cessary to  inquire  whether  there  was  any  mode  of  using  them  pe- 
culiar to  the  Hebrews  ;  the  particular  and  interior  elegancies  of  them 
are  to  be  investigated  ;  and  to  this  object  of  our  pursuit  we  shall  not, 
I  apprehend,  find  any  easier  access,  than  by  that  track,  which  the 
nature  of  the  subject  itself  obviously  indicates  to  us. 

It  is  the  peculiar  design  of  the  figurative  style,  taken  in  the  j 
sense  in  which  I  have  explained  it,  to  exhibit  objects  in  a  clearer  or  / 
more  striking,  in  a  sublimer  or  more  forcible  manner.  Since,  there- 
fore, whatever  is  employed  with  a  view  to  the  illustration  and  eleva- 
tion of  another  subject,  ought  itself  to  be  as  familiar  and  obvious,  at 
the  same  time  as  grand  and  magnificent  as  possible,  it  becomes  ne- 
cessary to  adduce  images  from  those  objects,  with  which  both  the  wri- 
ters and  the  persons  they  address  are  well  acquainted,  and  which 
have  been  constantly  esteemed  of  the  highest  dignity  and  importance. 
On  the  other  hand,  if  the  reader  be  accustomed  to  habits  of  life  to- 
tally different  from  those  of  the  author,  and  be  conversant  only  with 
different  objects ;  in  that  case  many  descriptions  and  sentiments, 
which  were  clearly  illustrated  and  magnificently  expressed  by  the 
one,  will  appear  to  the  other  mean  and  obscure,  harsh  and  unnat- 
ural :  and  this  will  be  the  case  more  or  less,  in  proportion  as  they 
differ  or  are  more  remote  from  each  other  in  time,  situation,  customs 
sacred  or  profane,  in  fine,  in  all  the  forms  of  public  and  private  life. 
On  this  account  difficulties  must  occur  in  the  perusal  of  almost  eve- 
ry work  of  literature,  and  particularly  in  poetry,  where  every  thing 
is  depicted  and  illustrated  with  the  greatest  variety  and  abundance  of 
imagery ;  they  must  be  still  more  numerous  in  such  of  the  poets 
as  are  foreign  and  ancient ;  in  the  Orientals  above  all  foreigners, 
they  being  the  farthest  removed  from  our  customs  and  manners  ; 
and  of  all  the  Orientals  more  especially  in  the  Hebrews,  theirs  being 
confessedly  the  most  ancient  compositions  extant.  To  all  who  apply 
themselves  to  the  study  of  their  poetry,  for  the  reasons  which  I  have 
enumerated,  difficulties  and  inconveniences  must  necessarily  occur. 
Not  only  the  antiquity  of  these  writings  forms  a  principal  obstruc- 
tion in  many  respects ;  but  the  manner  of  living,  of  speaking,  of 
thinking,  which  prevailed  in  those  times,  will  be  found  altogether 
different  from  our  customs  and  habits.  There  is  therefore  great  dan- 


48  FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  LiECT.  V. 

ger,  lest  viewing  them  from  an  improper  situation,  and  rashly  estima- 
ting all  things  by  our  own  standard,  we  form  an  erroneous  judge- 
ment. 

Of  this  kind  of  mistake  we  are  to  be  always  aware,  and  these  in- 
conveniences are  to  be  counteracted  by  all  possible  diligence  :  nor  is 
it  enough  to  be  acquainted  with  the  language  of  this  people,  their 
manners,  discipline,  rites  and  ceremonies  :  we  must  even  investigate 
their  inmost  sentiments,  the  manner  and  connexion  of  their  thoughts ; 
/in  one  word,  we  must  see  all  things  with  their  eyes,  estimate  all  things 
\      /by  their  opinions  :  we  must  endeavour    as  much  as  possible  to  read 
—Hebrew  as  the  Hebrews  would  have  read  it.    We  must  act  as  the  as- 
tronomers with  regard  to  that  branch  of  their  science  which  is  called 
comparative,  who  in  order  to  form  a  more  perfect  idea  of  the  general 
system,  and  its  different  parts,  conceive  themselves  as  passing  through, 
and  surveying  the  whole  universe,  migrating  from  one  planet  to  anoth- 
er, and  becoming  for  a  short  time  inhabitants  of  each.     Thus  they 
clearly  contemplate,  and  accurately  estimate  what  each  possesses 
peculiar  to  itself  with  respect  to  situation,  celerity,  satellites,  and  its 
relation  to  the  rest ;  thus  they  distinguish  what  and  how  different  an 
appearance  of  the  universe  is  exhibited  according  to  the  different 
situations  from  which  it  is  contemplated.     In  like  manner,  he  who 
|    would   perceive  and   feel  the  peculiar   elegancies  of  the    Hebrew 
\  poetry,  must  imagine  himself  exactly  situated  as  the  persons  for 
•  whom  it  was  written,  or  even  as  the  writers  themselves ;  he  must  not 
attend  to  the  ideas  which  on  a  cursory  reading  certain  words  would 
obtrude  upon  his  mind ;  he  is  to  feel  them  as  a  Hebrew,   hearing  or 
delivering  the  same  words  at  the  same  time,  and  in  the  same  coun- 
try.    As  far  as  he  is  able  to  pursue  this  plan,  so  far  he  will  compre- 
hend their  force  and  excellence.     This  indeed  in  many  cases  it  will 
not  be  easy  to  do;  in  some  it  will  be  impossible  ;  in  all,  however,  it 
ought  to  be  regarded,  and  in  those  passages  particularly  in  which  the 
figurative  style  is  found  to  prevail. 

In  the  metaphor  for  instance  (and  what  I  remark  concerning  it 
may  be  applied  to  all  the  rest  of  the  figures,  since  they  are  all  natural- 
ly allied  to  each  other)  two  circumstances  are  to  be  especially  regard- 
ed, on  which  its  whole  force  and  elegance  will  depend  :  first,  that  re- 
semblance which  is  the  ground-work  of  the  figurative  and  parabolic 
style,  and  which  will  perhaps  be  sufficiently  apparent  even  from  a  com- 
mon and  indistinct  knowledge  of  the  objects ;  arid  secondly,  the  beau- 
ty or  dignity  of  the  idea  which  is  substituted  for  another ;  and  this  is 


.  V.  FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE.  49 

a  circumstance  of  unusual  nicety.  An  opinion  of  grace  and  digni- 
ty results  frequently,  not  so  much  from  the  objects  themselves,  in 
which  these  qualities  are  supposed  to  exist,  as  from  the  disposition 
of  the  spectator ;  or  from  some  slight  and  obscure  relation  or  connex- 
ion which  they  have  with  some  other  things.  Thus  it  sometimes  hap- 
pens that  the  external  form  and  lineaments  may  be  sufficiently  appar- 
rent,  though  the  original  and  intrinsic  beauty  and  elegance  be  totally 
erased  by  time. 

For  these  reasons,  it  will  perhaps  not  be  an  useless  undertaking 
when  we  treat  of  the  metaphors  of  the  sacred  poets,  to  enter  more  ful- 
ly into  the  nature  of  their  poetical  imagery  in  general,  of  which  the 
metaphor  constitutes  so  principal  a  part.  By  this  mode  of  proceed- 
ing, we  shall  be  enabled  not  only  to  discern  the  general  beauty  and 
elegance  of  this  figure  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  but  the  peculiar  ele- 
gance, which  it  frequently  possesses,  if  we  only  consider  how  for- 
cible it  must  have  appeared  to  those  for  whom  it  was  originally  in- 
tended ;  and  what  a  connexion  and  agreement  these  figurative  ex- 
pressions must  have  had  with  their  circumstances,  feelings  and  opin- 
ions. Thus  many  expressions  and  allusions,  which  even  now  ap- 
pear beautiful,  must,  when  considered  in  this  manner,  shine  with 
redoubled  lustre ;  and  many,  which  now  strike  the  superficial  read- 
er as  coarse,  mean,  or  deformed,  must  appear  graceful,  elegant,  and 
sublime. 

The  whole  course  of  nature,  this  immense  universe  of  things,  of- 
fers itself  to  human  contemplation,  and  affords  an  infinite  variety,  a 
confused  assemblage,  a  wilderness,  as  it  were,  of  images,  which,  be- 
ing collected  as  the  materials  of  poetry,  are  selected  and  produced 
as  occasion  dictates.  The  mind  of  man  is  that  mirror  of  Plato,3 
which,  as  he  turns  about  at  pleasure,  and  directs  to  a  different  point  of 
view,  he  creates  another  sun,  other  stars,  planets,  animals,  and 
even  another  self.  In  this  shadow  or  image  of  himself,  which  man 
beholds  when  the  mirror  is  turned  inward  towards  himself,  he  is  en- 
abled in  some  degree  to  contemplate  the  souls  of  other  men :  for, 
from  what  he  feels  and  perceives  in  himself,  he  forms  conjectures 
concerning  others ;  and  apprehends  and  describes  the  manners,  af- 
fections, conceptions  of  others  from  his  own.  Of  this  assemblage 
of  images,  which  the  human  mind  collects  from  all  nature,  and  even 
from  itself,  that  is,  from  its  own  emotions  and  operations,  the  least 


3  De  Rep.  Lib.  Xp  subinit. 


50  FIGURATIVE  LANGUAGE-  L.ECT.  V. 

clear  and  evident  are  those  which  are  explored  by  reason  and  argu- 
ment ;  the  more  evident  and  distinct  are  those  which  are  formed 
from  the  impressions  made  by  external  objects  on  the  senses ;  and 
of  these,  the  clearest  and  most  vivid  are  those  which  are  perceived 
by  the  eye.  Hence  poetry  abounds  most  in  those  images  which 
are  furnished  by  the  senses,  and  chiefly  those  of  the  sight ;  in  or- 
der to  depict  the  obscure  by  the  more  manifest,  the  subtile  by  the 
more  substantial ;  and,  as  far  as  simplicity  is  its  object,  it  pursues 
those  ideas  which  are  most  familiar  and  most  evident;  of  which 
there  is  such  an  abundance,  that  they  serve  as  well  the  purpose  of 
ornament  and  variety  as  that  of  illustration. 

Those  images  or  pictures  of  external  objects,  which  like  lights 
adorn  and  distinguish  the  poetic  diction,  are  indeed  infinite  in  num- 
ber. In  an  immensity  of  matter,  however,  that  we  may  be  enabled 
to  pursue  some  kind  of  order,  and  not  wander  in  uncertainty  and 
doubt,  we  may  venture  to  fix  upon  four  sources  of  these  ideas,  whith- 
er all  that  occur  may  be  commodiously  referred.  Thus,  poetical 
imagery  may  be  derived  first,  from  natural  objects  ;  secondly,  from 
the  manners,  arts,  and  circumstances  of  common  life ;  thirdly,  from 
things  sacred ;  and  lastly,  from  the  more  remarkable  facts  recorded 
in  sacred  history. (B)  From  each  of  these  topics  a  few  cases  will  be 
selected,  and  illustrated  by  examples,  which  though  chiefly  of  the 
metaphorical  kind,  will  yet  be  in  a  great  measure  applicable  to 
the  other  figures  which  have  been  specified ;  these  we  shall  after- 
wards take  an  opportunity  to  explain,  when  not  only  the  figures 
themselves  will  be  noticed,  but  also  the  different  forms  and  rules 
for  their  introduction  and  embellishment. 


LECTURE    VI. 

OF  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  THE  OBJECTS  OF  NATURE. 

The  frequent  use  of  the  metaphor  renders  a  style  magnificent,  but  often  obscure:  the  Hebrew 
poets  have  accomplished  the  sublime  without  losing  perspicuity— Three  causes  assigned  for 
this  singular  fact  :  first,  the  imagery  which  they  introduce  is  in  general  derived  from  familiar 
objects  :  again,  in  the  use  and  accommodation  of  it  they  pursue  a  certain  custom  and  anal- 
ogy :  lastly,  they  make  the  most  free  use  of  that  which  is  most  familiar,  and  the  nature  $and 
extent  of  which  is  most  generally  known — These  observations  confirmed  by  examples 
(1.)  from  natural  objects  :  such  as  are  common  to  mankind  in  general ;  such  as  are  more  fa- 
miliar to  the  Hebrews  than  to  others  ;  and  such  as  are  peculiar  to  them. 

"  THE  great  excellence  of  the  poetic  dialect,"  as  Aristotle  most 
judiciously  remarks,  "consists  in  perspicuity  without  meanness. 
Familiar  terms  and  words  in  common  use  form  a  clear  and  perspic- 
uous, but  frequently  a  low  style  ;  unusual  or  foreign  expressions 
give  it  an  air  of  grandeur,  but  frequently  render  it  obscure."1  Of 
those  which  he  calls  foreign,  the  principal  force  lies  in  the  metaphor  ; 
but  "as  the  temperate  and  reasonable  use  of  this  figure  enlivens 
a  composition,  so  the  frequent  introduction  of  metaphors  obscures 
it ;  and  if  they  very  commonly  occur,  it  will  be  little  better  than 
an  enigma."2  If  the  Hebrew  poets  be  examined  by  the  rules  and 
precepts  of  this  great  philosopher  and  critic,  it  will  readily  be  allow- 
ed, that  they  have  assiduously  attended  to  the  sublimity  of  their  com- 
positions by  the  abundance  and  splendour  of  their  figures  ;  though 
it  may  be  doubted  whether  they  might  not  have  been  more  temper- 
ate in  the  use  of  them.  For  in  those  poems  at  least,  in  which  some- 
thing of  uncommon  grandeur  and  sublimity  is  aimed  at,  there  pre- 
dominates a  perpetual,  I  had  almost  said  a  continued  use  of  the  met- 
aphor, sometimes  daringly  introduced,  sometimes  rushing  in  with 
imminent  hazard  of  propriety.  A  metaphor  thus  licentiously  intrud- 
ed, is  frequently  continued  to  an  immoderate  extent.  The  Orien- 
tals are  attached  to  this  style  of  composition  ;  and  many  flights  which 
our  ears,  too  fastidious  perhaps  in  these  respects,  will  scarcely  bear, 
must  be  allowed  to  the  general  freedom  and  boldness  of  these  wri- 
ters. But  if  we  examine  the  sacred  poems,  and  consider  at  the 
same  time  that  a  great  degree  of  obscurity  must  result  from  the  to- 

l  Poet.  c.  22.  2  Ib.  et  QUINT,  viii.  6. 


5%  POETIC  IMAGERY  PROM  L.ECT.  VI. 

tal  oblivion  in  which  many  sources  of  their  imagery  must  be  invol- 
ved ;  of  which  many  examples  are  to  be  found  in  the  Song  of  Solo- 
mon, as  well  as  in  other  parts  of  the  sacred  writings ;  we  shall,  I 
think,  find  cause  to  wonder  that  in  writings  of  so  great  antiquity, 
and  in  such  an  unlimited  use  of  figurative  expression,  there  should 
yet  appear  so  much  purity  and  perspicuity,  both  in  sentiment  and  lan- 
guage. (A)  In  order  to  explore  the  real  cause  of  this  remarkable  fact, 
and  to  explain  more  accurately  the  genius  of  the  parabolic  style,  I 
shall  premise  a  few  observations  concerning  the  use  of  the  metaphor 
in  the  Hebrew  poetry ;  which  I  trust  will  be  sufficiently  clear  to 
those  who  peruse  it  with  attention,  and  which  I  think  in  general  are 
founded  in  truth. 

In  the  first  place,  the  Hebrew  pacts  frequently  make  use  of  im- 
agery borrowed  from  common  life,  and  from  objects  well  known  and 
familiar.  On  this  the  perspicuity  of  figurative  language  will  be  found 
in  a  great  measure  to  depend.  For  a  principal  use  of  metaphors  is 
to  illustrate  the  subject  by  a  tacit  comparison ;  but  if,  instead  of  fa- 
miliar ideas,  we  introduce  such  as  are  new,  and  not  perfectly  under- 
stood ;  if  we  endeavour  to  demonstrate  what  is  plain  by  what  is  oc- 
cult, instead  of  making  a  subject  clearer,  we  render  it  more  perplex- 
ed and  difficult.  To  obviate  this  inconvenience,  we  must  take  care, 
not  only  to  avoid  the  violent  and  too  frequent  use  of  metaphors,  but 
also  not  to  introduce  such  as  are  obscure  and  but  slightly  related. 
From  these  causes,  and  especially  from  the  hatter,  arises  the  difficul- 
ty of  the  Latin  satirist  Persius ;  and  but  for  the  uncommon  accura- 
cy of  the  sacred  poets  in  this  respect,  we  should  now  be  scarcely 
able  to  comprehend  a  single  word  of  their  productions. 

In  the  next  place,  the  Hebrews  not  only  deduce  their  metaphors 
from  familiar,  or  well  known  objects,  but  preserve  one  constant  track 
and  manner  in  the  use  and  accommodation  of  them  to  their  subject. 
The  parabolic  may  indeed  be  accounted  a  peculiar  style,  in  which 
things  moral,  political,  and  divine,  are  marked  and  represented  by 
comparisons  implied  or  expressed,  and  adopted  from  sensible  objects. 
As  in  common  and  plain  language,  therefore,  certain  words  serve 
for  signs  of  certain  ideas ;  so,  for  the  most  part,  in  the  parabolic 
style,  certain  natural  images  serve  to  illustrate  certain  ideas  more  ab- 
struse and  refined.  This  assertion  indeed  is  not  to  be  understood 
absolutely  without  exception ;  but  thus  far  at  least  we  may  affirm, 
that  the  sacred  poets  in  illustrating  the  same  subject,  make  a  much 
more  constant  use  of  the  same  imagery  than  other  poets  are  accus- 


.  VI.  THE  OBJECTS  OF  NATURE.  53 

tomed  to :  and  this  practice  has  a  surprising  effect  in  preserving 
perspicuity. 

I  must  observe  in  the  last  place,  that  the  Hebrews  employ  more 
freely  and  more  daringly  that  imagery  in  particular,  which  is  bor- 
rowed from  the  most  obvious  and  familiar  objects,  and  the  figurative 
effect  of  which  is  established  and  defined  by  general  and  constant 
use.  This,  as  it  renders  a  composition  clear  and  luminous  even 
where  there  is  the  greatest  danger  of  obscurity  ;  so  it  shelters  effect- 
ually the  sacred  poets  from  the  imputation  of  exuberance,  harsh- 
ness, or  bombast. 

In  order  to  confirm  and  illustrate  by  examples  what  has  been 
briefly  set  forth  in  the  preceding  remarks,  I  shall  proceed  to  con- 
sider a  few  instances  of  metaphors  derived  from  natural  objects, (B) 
and  such  as  are  most  in  use  :  This  I  shall  do  in  such  a  manner, 
that  whatever  observations  occur  upon  one  or  two  of  them,  may  be 
applied  to  many  other  instances. 

The  images  of  light  and  darkness  are  commonly  made  use  of  in 
all  languages  to  imply  or  denote  prosperity  and  adversity,  agreeably 
to  the  common  sense  and  perception  which  all  men  have  of  the  ob- 
jects themselves.  But  the  Hebrews  employ  those  metaphors  more 
frequently,  and  with  less  variation  than  other  people ;  indeed  they 
seldom  refrain  from  them  whenever  the  subject  requires,  or  will  even 
admit  of  their  introduction.  These  expressions,  therefore,  may  be 
accounted  among  those  forms  of  speech,which  in  the  parabolic  style 
are  established  and  defined ;  since  they  exhibit  the  most  noted  and 
familiar  images,  and  the  application  of  them  on  this  occasion  is  jus- 
tified by  an  acknowledged  analogy,  and  approved  by  constant  and 
unvarying  custom.  In  the  use  of  images,  so  conspicuous  and  so 
familiar  among  the  Hebrews,  a  degree  of  boldness  is  excusable. 
The  Latins  introduce  them  more  sparingly,  and  therefore  are  more 
cautious  in  the  application  of  them  : 

"  Lucem  redde  tuae,  Dux  bone,  patriae  : 
"  Instar  veris  enim  vultus  ubi  tuus 
6C  Affulsit  populo,  gratior  it  dies, 
"  Et  soles  melius  nitent."3 

The  most  respectable  of  the  Roman  muses  have  scarcely  any  thing 
mere  elegant,  I  will  add  at  the  same  time,  that  they  have  scarcely 
any  thing  bolder  on  any  similar  occasion.  But  the  Hebrews,  upon 
a  subject  more  sublime  indeed  in  itself,  and  illustrating  it  by  an  idea 

3  Hor.  Carm,  iv.  5. 


54  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  L.ECT.  VI 

which  was  more  habitual  to  them,  more  daringly  exalt  their  strains,, 
and  give  a  loose  rein  to  the  spirit  of  poetry.  They  display,  for  in- 
stance, not  the  image  of  the  spring,  of  Aurora,  of  the  dreary  night, 
but  the  sun  and  stars  as  rising  with  increased  splendour  in  a  new 
creation,  or  again  involved  in  chaos  and  primeval  darkness.  Does 
the  sacred  bard  promise  to  his  people  a  renewal  of  the  divine  favour, 
and  a  recommencement  of  universal  prosperity  ?  In  what  magnificent 
colours  does  he  depict  it !  such  indeed  as  no  translation  can  illus- 
trate, but  such  as  none  can  obscure  : 

"  Erit  lux  lunae  instar  soils  meridian! ; 

"  Erunt  solares  radii  semtemplices."4 

But  even  this  is  not  sufficient. 

"  Non  diurna  solis  luce  uteris  amplius  ; 

"  Neque  ad  illustrandam  noctem  luna  tibi  illucebit : 

"  Sed  erit  tibi  lehova  aeterna  lux ; 

"  Et  gloria  tibi  erit  Deus  tuus. 

"  Non  occidet  amplius  sol  tuus, 

"  Nee  luna  tua  sese  retrahet ; 

"  Nam  lehova  erit  tibi  aeterna  lux, 

"  Et  dies  moeroris  tui  desinent."5 

In  another  place  he  has  admirably  diversified  the  same  sentiment : 

"  Et  pudebit  lunam,  et  erubescet  sol  meridianus ; 
"  Cum  regnat  lehova  exercituum, 
"  In  monte  Zione  et  in  Hierosolymis, 
"  Et  coram  senioribus  suis  gloriose."6 

On  the  other  hand,  denouncing  ruin  against  the  proud  king  of 
Egypt: 

"  Cum  extinguam  te,  obtegam  coelos? 

"  Et  Stellas  eorum  atrabo  ; 

"  Solem  nube  involvam, 

"  Nee  splendorem  suum  emittet  luna : 

"  Omnia  coeli  lumina  supra  te  obscurabo, 

"  Terramque  tuam  tenebris  operiam,  edicit  Dominus  lehova."7 

These  expressions  are  bold  and  daring :  but  the  imagery  is  well 
known,  the  use  of  it  is  common,  the  signification  definite  ;  they  are 
therefore  perspicuous,  clear,  and  truly  magnificent. 

There  are,  moreover,  other  images  from  natural  objects,  which 
although  in  some  measure  common  to  other  nations  as  well  as  the 
Hebrews,  are  nevertheless,  from  the  situation  and  nature  of  the  coun- 
try, much  better  known  and  more  familiar  to  them.  There  is  no 

4  ISAI.  xxx.  26.     5  ISAI.  Ix.   19,  20.    6  ISAI.  xxiv.  23.      ?  EZEK.  xxxii.  7,  8. 


.  VI.  THE  OBJECTS  OP  NATURE.  55 

", 

metaphor  more  frequent  in  the  sacred  poems,  than  that  by  which 
sudden  and  great  calamities  are  expressed  under  the  figure  of  a  del- 
uge of  waters.  This  metaphor  seems  to  have  been  remarkably  fa- 
miliar to  the  Hebrews,  as  if  directly  taken  from  the  nature  and  state 
of  the  country.  The  river  Jordan  was  immediately  before  their  eyes, 
which  annually  overflowed  its  banks ;  for  the  snows  of  Lebanon  and 
the  neighbouring  mountains  being  melted  in  the  beginning  of  the 
summer,  the  waters  of  the  river  were  often  suddenly  augmented  by 
the  torrents  which  burst  forth  from  them.  The  whole  country  of  Pal- 
estine indeed  was  watered  by  very  few  perennial  currents ;  but  being 
chiefly  mountainous,  was  exposed  to  frequent  floods,  rushing  violent- 
ly along  the  valleys  and  narrow  passages,  after  great  tempests  of  rain, 
which  periodically  took  place  at  certain  seasons :  and  on  this  ac- 
count Moses  himself  commends  to  the  Israelites  the  country  which 
they  were  about  to  invade,  as  being  totally  different  from  every  thing 
they  had  experienced  in  Egypt,  or  in  the  desert  of  Arabia.8  This 
image,  therefore,  though  known  to  all  poets  and  adopted  by  most, 
may  be  accounted  peculiarly  familiar,  local  in  a  manner  to  the  He- 
brews, and  of  consequence  we  cannot  wonder  at  its  frequent  introduc- 
tion into  their  compositions.  The  prophet  seems  to  have  depicted 
the  face  of  nature  exactly  as  it  appeared  to  him,  and  to  have  adapted 
it  to  the  figurative  description  of  his  own  situation,  when  from  the 
banks  of  Jordan,  and  the  mountains  at  the  head  of  that  river,  he 
pours  forth  the  tempestuous  violence  of  his  sorrow  with  a  force  of 
language  and  an  energy  of  expression,  which  has  been  seldom  equal- 
led : 

"  Abyssus  abyssum  inclanfiat,  eircumsonantibus  tuis  cataractis ; 
"  Fluctus  tui  omnes  undaeque  me  obruerunt."9 

It  may  not  be  improper  to  remark  in  this  place,  that  though  this 
metaphor  is  so  usual  in  all  the  other  sacred  writers,  whenever  an  oc- 
casion presents  itself  of  introducing  it,  the  author  of  Job,  in  the 
whole  of  that  poem,  which  from  the  nature  of  the  subject  presented 
excellent  opportunities  of  employing  it,  has  not  more  than  twice, 
and  then  but  slightly,  made  the  least  allusion  to  it.10  Nature,  indeed, 
presented  a  different  aspect  to  the  author,  whoever  he  was,  of  that 
most  noble  poem,  if,  as  many  learned  men  conjecture,  it  was  com- 
posed in  some  part  of  Arabia,  for  which,  I  confess,  there  is  great  ap- 

8  See  SANDYS'  Travels,  B.  III.       DEUT.  viii.  7.  xi.  10, 11.        JOSH.  iii.  15. 
1  CHRON.  xii.   15.       Ecclus.xxiv.2G.  9PsAL.  xcii.  8. 

10  See  JOB  xxii.  11.  xxvii.  20. 


56  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  L,ECT.  VI. 

pearance  of  argument,  from  that  famous  simile,  in  which  he  com- 
pares his  friends  with  the  perfidious  brook  ;n  a  comparison  manifestly 
taken  from  the  rocky  parts  of  Arabia ,  and  adorned  by  many  images 
proper  to  that  region. 

Finally,  there  is  a  species  of  imagery  derived  also  from  natural 
objects,  altogether  peculiar  to  the  Hebrews.  Among  the  mountains 
of  Palestine,  the  most  remarkable,  and  consequently  the  most  cel- 
ebrated in  the  sacred  poetry,  are  mount  Lebanon  and  mount  Carmel. 
The  one,  remarkable  as  well  for  its  height  as  for  its  extent,  magnitude, 
and  the  abundance  of  the  cedars  which  adorned  its  summit,  exhibit- 
ing a  striking  and  substantial  appearance  of  strength  and  majesty. 
The  other,  rich  and  fruitful,  abounding  with  vines,  olives,  and  deli- 
cious fruits,  in  a  most  flourishing  state  both  by  nature  and  cultivation, 
and  displaying  a  delightful  appearance  of  fertility,  beauty,  and  grace. 
The  different  form  and  aspect  of  these  two  mountains  is  most  accu- 
rately defined  by  Solomon,  when  he  compares  the  manly  dignity 
with  Lebanon,  and  the  beauty  and  delicacy  of  the  female  with  Car- 
mel.12 Each  of  them  suggests  a  different  general  image,  which  the 
Hebrew  poets  adopt  for  different  purposes,  expressing  that  by  a  met- 
aphor, which  more  timid  writers  would  delineate  by  a  direct  com- 
parison. Thus  Lebanon  is  used,  by  a  very  bold  figure,  for  the  whole 
people  of  the  Jews,  or  for  the  state  of  the  church  ;  for  Jerusalem  ; 
for  the  temple  of  Jerusalem  ;  for  the  king  of  Assyria  even,  and  for  his 
army  ;  for  whatever,  in  a  word,  is  remarkable,  august,  and  sublime : 
and  in  the  same  manner  whatever  possesses  much  fertility,  wealth, 
or  beauty,  is  called  Carmel.  Thus  too,  by  the  fat  rams,  heifers,  and 
bulls  of  Basan,  by  the  wild  beast  of  the  reeds,  or  lion  of  Jordan, 
are  denoted  the  insolent  and  cruel  tyrants  of  the  Gentiles.13  In  this 
and  other  imagery  of  the  same  kind,  though  the  sacred  writers  pre- 
sume to  attempt  what  would  not  be  allowed  in  the  Greek  and  Latin 
poets,  yet  they  cannot  be  accused  of  any  deficiency  in  perspicuity  or 
elegance,  especially  if  it  be  remembered  that  the  objects  which  fur- 
nished them  with  this  imagery  were  all  familiar,  or,  if  I  may  be  al- 
lowed the  expression,  indigenous  to  the  Hebrews.(c) 

In  a  word,  we  may  generally  remark  upon  this  head,  that  all  po- 
etry, and  paticularly  that  of  the  Hebrews,  deduces  its  principal  or- 

11  JOB  vi.  15—20.  12  CANT.  v.  15.  vii.  5. 

13  ISAI.  xxxiii.  9.  xxxv.  2.  ISAI.  xxxvii.  24.  JER.  xxii.  6,  23.  ZECH.  xi. 
1.  ISAI.  x.  34.  ISAI.  xi.  13.  EZEK.  xxxi.  xvii.  3.  ISAI.  x.  18.  MIC.  vii.  14. 
JER.  iv.26.  PSAL.  xxii.  13.  EZEK.  xxxix.  18.  AMOS  iv.  1.  Ps.  Ixviii.  31. 


.  VI.  THE  OBJECTS  OF  NATURE.  57 

naments  or  imagery  from  natural  objects  :  and  since  these  images 
are  formed  in  the  mind  of  each  writer,  and  expressed  conformably  to 
what  occurs  to  his  senses,  it  cannot  otherwise  happen,  but,  that 
through  diversity  of  situation,  some  will  be  more  familiar,  some  almost 
peculiar  to  certain  nations ;  and  even  those  which  seem  most  gener- 
al, will  always  have  some  latent  connexion  with  their  immediate  or- 
igin, and  with  their  native  soil.  It  is  the  first  duty  of  a  critic,  there- 
fore, to  remark,  as  far  as  is  possible,  the  situation  and  habits  of  the 
author,  the  natural  history  of  his  country,  and  the  scene  of  the  poem. 
Unless  we  continually  attend  to  these  points,  we  shall  scarcely  be 
able  to  judge  with  any  degree  of  certainty  concerning  the  elegance 
or  propriety  of  the  sentiments  :  the  plainest  will  sometimes  escape 
our  observation ;  the  peculiar  and  interior  excellencies  will  remain 
totally  concealed.  (D) 


LECTURE  VII. 

OF  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  COMMON  LIFE. 

Examples  of  poetic  imagery  from  common  life— The  habits  of  life  extremely  simple  among  the 
Hebrews,  whose  principal  employments  were  agriculture  and  pasturage — The  dignity  of 
these  employments;  and  the  splendour  of  the  imagery  which  is  borrowed  from  them  :  Thresh- 
ing, and  the  threshing  instruments — The  sublimity  of  the  imagery  which  is  taken  from  fa- 
miliar objects,  result!  from  its  propriety.  The  poetic  hell  of  the  Hebrews  explained  ;  the 
imagery  of  which  is  borrowed  from  their  subterraneous  sepulchres  and  funeral  rites. 

IN  my  last  Lecture  I  explained  three  causes,  which  have  enabled 
the  Hebrew  poets  to  preserve  in  their  figurative  style  the  most  perfect 
union  between  perspicuity  and  sublimity.  I  remarked  in  the  first 
place,  that  they  chiefly  employed  images  taken  from  familiar  objects, 
such  I  mean  as  were  generally  known  and  understood ;  secondly, 
that  in  the  use  or  application  of  them,  they  observed  a  regular  track, 
method,  or  analogy ;  and  lastly,  that  they  used  most  freely  that  kind 
of  imagery  which  was  most  familiar,  and  the  application  of  which 
was  most  generally  understood.  The  truth  of  these  observations 
will  I  think  find  further  and  more  decisive  confirmation,  if  those 
metaphors  be  considered,  which  are  taken  from  arts,  manners,  and 
common  life.  These,  you  will  easily  recollect,  I  before  pointed  out 
as  another  source  of  poetical  imagery :  and  for  this  part  of  the  sub- 
ject a  few  general  observations  will  suffice,  with  an  example  or  two 
out  of  the  great  number  which  present  themselves  in  the  sacred  wri- 
tings. The  whole  course  and  method  of  common  or  domestic  life 
among  the  Hebrews  of  the  more  ancient  times,  was  simple  and  uni- 
form in  the  greatest  degree.  There  existed  not  that  variety  of  stud- 
ies and  pursuits,  of  arts,  conditions,  and  employments,  which  may 
be  observed  among  other  nations,  who  boast  of  superior  civilization  ; 
and  rightly,  indeed,  if  luxury,  levity,  and  pride,  be  the  criterions  of 
it.  All  enjoyed  the  same  equal  liberty ;  all  of  them,  as  being  the 
offspring  of  the  same  ancient  stock,  boasted  an  equality  of  lineage 
and  rank  ;  there  were  no  empty  titles,  no  ensigns  of  false  glory ;  scarce- 
ly any  distinction  or  precedence  but  that  which  resulted  from  supe- 
rior virtue  or  conduct,  from  the  dignity  of  age  and  experience,  or 
from  services  rendered  to  their  country.  Separated  from  the  rest  of 


LECT.  VII.          POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  COMMON  LIFE.  59 

mankind  by  their  religion  and  laws,  and  not  at  all  addicted  to  com- 
merce, they  were  contented  with  those  arts,  which  were  necessary 
to  a  simple  and  uncultivated  (or  rather  uncorrupted)  state  of  life. 
Thus  their  principal  employments  were  agriculture  and  the  care  of 
cattle  ;  they  were  a  nation  of  husbandmen  and  shepherds.  The  lands 
had  been  originally  parcelled  out  to  the  different  families  ;  the  por- 
tions of  which  (by  the  laws  of  the  country)  could  not  be  alienated  by 
sale,1  and  therefore  descended  to  their  posterity  without  diminution. 
The  fruits  of  the  earth,  the  produce  of  his  land  and  labour,  consti- 
tuted the  wealth  of  each  individual.  Not  even  the  greatest  among 
them  esteemed  it  mean  and  disgraceful  to  be  employed  in  the  lowest 
offices  of  rural  labour.  In  the  Scripture  history,  therefore,  we  read 
of  eminent  persons  called  to  the  highest  and  most  sacred  offices,  he- 
roes, kings,  and  prophets,  from  the  plough  and  from  the  stalls.2 

Such  being  the  state  of  things,  we  cannot  reasonably  be  surpris- 
ed to  find  the  Hebrew  writers  deducing  most  of  their  metaphors 
from  those  arts  particularly,  in  which  they  were  educated  from  their 
earliest  years.  We  are  not  to  wonder  that  those  objects  which  were 
most  familiar  to  their  senses,  afforded  the  principal  ornaments  of  their 
poetry ;  especially  since  they  furnished  so  various  and  so  elegant  an 
assortment  of  materials,  that  not  only  the  beautiful,  but  the  grand 
and  magnificent  might  be  collected  from  them.  If  any  person  of 
more  nicety  than  judgement  should  esteem  some  of  these  rustic  im- 
ages groveling  or  vulgar,  it  may  be  of  some  use  to  him  to  be  inform- 
ed, that  such  an  effect  can  only  result  from  the  ignorance  of  the  crit- 
ic, who,  through  the  medium  of  his  scanty  information  and  peculiar 
prejudices,  presumes  to  estimate  matters  of  the  most  remote  antiqui- 
ty ;  it  cannot  reasonably  be  attributed  as  an  error  to  the  sacred  poets, 
who  not  only  give  to  those  ideas  all  their  natural  force  and  dignity, 
but  frequently  by  the  vivacity  and  boldness  of  the  figure,  exhibit 
them  with  additional  vigour,  ornament,  and  beauty. 

It  would  be  a  tedious  task  to  instance  particularly  with  what  em- 
bellishments of  diction,  derived  from  one  low  and  trivial  object,  (as 
it  may  appear  to  some)  the  barn,  or  the  threshing-floor,  the  sacred 
writers  have  contrived  to  add  a  lustre  to  the  most  sublime,  and- a 
force  to  the  most  important  subjects :  Thus  "  JEHOVAH  threshes 
out  the  heathen  as  corn,  tramples  them  under  his  feet,  and  disperses 

1  LEV.  xxv.  13—16,  and  23,  24.     Compare  1  KINGS  xxi.  3. 

2  See  JUD.  iii.  31.  vi.  11.     1  SAM.  ix.  3.  xi.  5.    2  SAM.  vii.  8.     PSAL.  Ixxviii. 
72,  73.    1  KINGS  xix.  19,  20.    AMOS  i.  1.  vii.  14, 15, 


POETIC  IMAGERY  L.ECT.  VII. 


them.  He  delivers  the  nations  to  Israel  to  be  beaten  in  pieces  by 
an  indented  flail,  or  to  be  crushed  by  their  brazen  hoofs.  He  scat- 
ters his  enemies  like  chaff  upon  the  mountains,  and  disperses  them 
with  the  whirlwind  of  his  indignation."3 

"  Ecce  feci  te  traham ; 

"  Tribulum  novum,  instructum  dentibus  : 

"  Triturabis  monies  atque  comminues, 

"  Et  colles  tanquam  in  gluraam  rediges  : 

"  Ventilabis  eos,  ventusque  auferet, 

"  Et  turbo  eos  dissipabit."* 

Of  these  quotations  it  is  to  be  remarked,  first,  that  the  nature  of 
this  metaphor,  and  the  mode  of  applying  it,  are  constantly  and  cau- 
tiously regarded  by  the  different  authors  of  the  sacred  poems ;  and 
on  this  account,  notwithstanding  the  boldness  of  it,  both  chastity 
and  perspicuity  are  preserved  :  since  they  apply  it  solely  to  exagger- 
ate the  slaughter  and  dispersion  of  the  wicked.  The  force  and  apt- 
ness of  the  image  itself  in  illustrating  the  subject,  will  also  afford  a 
very  proper  and  ready  apology  for  some  degree  of  freedom  in  the  ap- 
plication of  it,  particularly  if  we  advert  to  the  nature  and  method  of 
this  rustic  operation  in  Palestine.  It  was  performed  in  a  high  situ- 
ation exposed  to  the  wind,  by  bruising  the  ear,  either  by  driving  in 
upon  the  sheaves  a  herd  of  cattle,  or  else  by  an  instrument  construct- 
ed of  large  planks,  and  sharpened  underneath  with  stones  or  iron ; 
and  sometimes  by  a  machine  in  the  form  of  a  cart,  with  iron  wheels 
or  axles  indented,  which  Varro  calls  Phcenicum,5  as  being  brought  to 
Italy  by  the  Carthaginians  from  Phoenicia,  which  was  adjacent  to 
Palestine.  From  this  it  is  plain  (not  to  mention  that  the  descriptions 
agree  in  every  particular)  that  the  same  custom  was  common  both 
to  the  Hebrews  and  the  Romans ;  and  yet  I  do  not  recollect  that 
the  latter  have  borrowed  any  of  their  poetical  imagery  from  this  oc- 
cupation. It  is  proper,  however,  to  remark,  that  this  image  was  ob- 
vious and  familiar  to  the  Hebrews  in  a  high  degree,  as  we  learn 
from  what  is  said  of  the  threshing-floor  of  Oman6  the  Jebusite,  which 
was  situated  in  an  open  place  (as  were  all  the  rest)  in  Jerusalem  it- 
self, and  in  the  highest  part  of  the  city,  in  the  very  place,  indeed, 
where  the  temple  of  Solomon  was  afterwards  erected. 

3HAB.iii.  12.       JOEL  iii.  14.      JER.  li.  33.       ISAI.  xxi.  10.      MIC.  iv.  13% 
PSALM  Ixxxiii.  14, 16.     ISAI.  xvii.  13. 

4  ISAI.  xli.  15, 16.  5  De  Re  Rust,  8.  52. 

6  2  CHRON.  iii.  1. 


.  VII.  FROM  COMMON  LIFE.  61 

Homer,  who  was  uncommonly  fond  of  every  picture  of  rural  life, 
esteemed  that  under  our  consideration  so  beautiful  and  significant, 
that,  in  a  few  instances,7  he  draws  his  comparisons  from  the  thresh- 
ing-floor (for  even  he  was  fearful  of  the  boldness  of  this  image  in 
the  form  of  a  metaphor.)  Two  of  these  comparisons  he  introduces 
to  illustrate  light  subjects,  contrary  to  the  practice  of  the  Hebrews ; 
but  the  third  is  employed  upon  a  subject  truly  magnificent,  and  this, 
as  it  approaches  in  some  degree  the  sublimity  of  the  Hebrew,  it  may 
not  be  improper  to  recite  : 

c&g  3'  ore  Tig  £M>ft]  fiuag  aonsvag  tvQVftstcjnovg, 
TQifi^ievai  y.Qi  Asvxov  ^v'TQu/uica  tv  orP.w»J , 
rPiu(ja  re  ItJiT*  tytvovTo  fio&v  rrco  TTOOO*  tgiuvxoiv 
"  &g  rji*  ' AxiM.fjOg  ftiYtt-fh'fiov  (.tatrv/tg  l/tnoi 
2Titftov  ouov  vtxvug  ts  xai  uOTtidctg.^ — 

This  comparison,  however,  though  deservedly  accounted  one  of  the 
grandest  and  most  beautiful  which  antiquity  has  transmitted  to  us, 
still  falls  greatly  short  of  the  Hebrew  boldness  and  sublimity.  A  He- 
brew writer  would  have  compared  the  hero  himself  with  the  instru- 
ment, and  not  his  horses  with  the  oxen  that  are  harnesssed  to  it, 
which  is  rather  too  apposite,  and  too  exactly  similar.9  But  custom 
had  not  given  equal  license  to  the  Greek  poetry ;  this  image  had 
not  been  equally  familiar,  had  not  occupied  the  same  place  as  with 
the  Hebrews ;  nor  had  acquired  the  same  force  and  authority  by 
long  prescription. 

I  ought  not  in  this  place  to  omit  that  supremely  magnificent  de- 
lineation of  the  divine  vengeance,  expressed  by  imagery  taken  from 
the  wine-press ;  an  image  which  very  frequently  occurs  in  the  sacred 
poets,  but  which  no  other  poetry  has  presumed  to  introduce.     But 
where  shall  we  find  expressions  of  equal  dignity  with  the  original  in 
any  modern  language?     By  what  art  of  the  pencil  can  we  exhibit 
even  a  shadow  or  an  outline  of  that  description,  in  which  Isaiah  de- 
picts the  Messiah  as  coming  to  vengeance  ? 
— Ille  patris  vires  indutus  et  iram, 
Dira  rubens  graditur,  per  stragem  et  fracta  potentum 
Agmina,  prona  solo  ;  prostratisque  hostibus  ultor 
Insultat ;  ceu  labra  novo  spumantia  musto 
Exercens,  salit  attritas  calcator  in  uvas, 
Cong-estamque  struem  subigit :  caede  atra  recenti 
Crura  raadent,  rorantque  inspersae  sanguine  vestes.10 

7  See  Iliad  v.  499  and  xiii.  588.  8  ILIAD,  XX.  495. 

9  This  will  be  more  fully  explained  in  Lect.  XII. 

10  ISAI.  Ixiii,  1—3. 


POETIC  IMAGERY  L.ECT.  VII. 


But  the  instances  are  innumerable  which  might  be  quoted,  of  met- 
aphors taken  from  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  Hebrews.  One 
general  remark,  however,  may  be  made  upon  this  subject,  namely, 
that  from  one  simple,  regular,  and  natural  mode  of  life  having  pre- 
vailed among  the  Hebrews,  it  has  arisen,  that  in  their  poetry  these 
metaphors  have  less  of  obscurity,  of  meanness  or  depression,  than 
could  be  expected,  when  we  consider  the  antiquity  of  their  writings, 
the  distance  of  the  scene,  and  the  uncommon  boldness  and  vivacity 
of  their  rhetoric.  Indeed,  to  have  made  use  of  the  boldest  imagery 
with  the  most  perfect  perspicuity,  and  the  most  common  and  familiar 
with  the  greatest  dignity,  is  a  commendation  almost  peculiar  to  the 
sacred  poets.  I  shall  not  hesitate  to  produce  an  example  of  this  kind, 
in  which  the  meanness  of  the  image  is  fully  equalled  by  the  plainness 
and  inelegance  of  the  expression  ;  and  yet  such  is  its  consistency, 
such  the  propriety  of  its  application,  that  I  do  not  scruple  to  pro- 
nounce it  sublime.  The  Almighty  threatens  the  ultimate  destruction 
of  Jerusalem  in  these  terms  : 

"  Et  detergam  Hierosolymam, 

"  Ut  deterserit  quispiam  pate  ram  ; 

"  Detergit  earn,  pronam  in  faciem  vertit."11 

But  many  of  these  images  must  falsely  appear  mean  and  obscure 
to  us,  who  differ  so  materially  from  the  Hebrews  in  our  manners  and 
customs  :  but  in  such  cases  it  is  our  duty  neither  too  rashly  to  blame, 
nor  too  suddenly  to  despair.  The  mind  should  rather  exert  itself  to 
discover,  if  possible,  the  connexion  between  the  literal  and  the  figura- 
tive meanings,  which,  in  abstruse  subjects,  frequently  depending  upon 
some  very  delicate  and  nice  relation,  eludes  our  penetration.  An  ob- 
solete custom,  for  instance,  or  some  forgotten  circumstance,  opportune- 
ly adverted  to,  will  sometimes  restore  its  true  perspicuity  and  credit 
to  a  very  intricate  passage.  Whether  the  instance  I  have  at  present 
in  view  may  prove  of  any  utility  or  not  in  this  respect,  I  will  not  pre- 
sume to  say  ;  it  may  possibly,  however,  serve  to  illustrate  still  further 
the  nature  of  the  Hebrew  imagery,  and  the  accuracy  of  their  poets  in 
the  application  of  it. 

Either  through  choice  or  necessity,  the  infernal  regions  and  the 
state  of  the  dead  has  been  a  very  common  topic  with  the  poets  of  every 
nation  ;  and  this  difficult  subject,  which  the  most  vigorous  under- 
standing is  unable  to  fathom  by  any  exertion  of  reason,  and  of  which 

11  2  KINGS  xxi.  13.     This  is  the  answer  of  some  prophet  as  related  by  the 
historian. 


.  VII.  FROM  COMMON  LIFE.  03 

conjecture  itself  can  scarcely  form  any  adequate  idea,  they  have  or- 
namented with  all  the  splendour  of  description,  as  one  of  the  most 
important  themes  which  could  engage  the  human  imagination. 
Thus  the  prompt  and  fertile  genius  of  the  Greeks,  naturally  adapted 
to  the  fabulous,  has  eagerly  embraced  the  opportunity  to  indulge  in  all 
the  wantonness  of  fiction,  and  has  peopled  the  infernal  regions  with 
such  a  profusion  of  monsters,  as  could  not  fail  to  promote  the  ridicule 
even  of  the  ignorant  and  the  vulgar.12  The  conduct  of  the  Hebrews 
has  been  very  different ;  their  fancy  was  restrained  upon  this  subject 
by  the  tenets  of  their  religion  ;  and  (notwithstanding  the  firm  per- 
suasion, of  the  existence  not  only  of  the  soul,  but  of  the  body  after 
death)  we  are  to  remember  they  were  equally  ignorant  with  the  rest 
of  mankind  of  the  actual  state  and  situation  of  the  dead.  In  this  case 
they  have  acted  as  in  every  other  :  what  was  plain  and  commonly 
understood  concerning  the  dead,  that  is,  what  happened  to  the  body, 
suggested  the  general  imagery  to  which  the  Hebrews  always  resort 
in  describing  the  state  and  condition  of  departed  souls,  and  in  form- 
ing what  may  be  termed,  if  the  expression  be  allowable,  their  poetical 
hell.  It  is  called  SHEOL  by  the  Hebrews  themselves,  by  the  Greeks 
HADES,  and  by  the  Latins  INFERNUM,  or  SEPULCHRUM.  Into  the 
funeral  rites  or  ceremonies  of  the  Hebrews  may  be  traced  all  the  im- 
agery which  their  poets  introduce  to  illustrate  this  subject ;  and  it 
must  be  confessed  that  these  afforded  ample  scope  for  poetical  em- 
bellishment. The  sepulchres  of  the  Hebrews,  at  least  those  of  re- 
spectable persons,  and  those  which  hereditarily  belonged  to  the  prin- 
cipal families,  were  extensive  caves,  or  vaults,  excavated  from  the 
native  rock  by  art  and  manual  labour.13  The  roofs  of  them  in  gene- 
eral  were  arched  ;  and  some  were  so  spacious  as  to  be  supported  by 
colonades.  All  round  the  sides  were  cells  for  the  reception  of  the 
Sarcophagi ;  these  were  properly  ornamented  with  sculpture,  and 
each  was  placed  in  its  proper  cell.  The  cave  or  sepulchre  admit- 
ted no  light,  being  closed  by  a  great  stone,  which  was  rolled  to  the 
mouth  of  the  narrow  passage  or  entrance.  Many  of  these  recep- 
tacles are  still  extant  in  Judea  :  two  in  particular  are  more  magnifi- 
cent than  all  the  rest,14  and  are  supposed  to  be  the  sepulchres  of  the 

12  See  Cicero,  Quaest.  Tusculan.  I.  5.  6. 

13  See  GEN.  xxiii.9,17.    2  KINGS  xiii.  21.     Is.xxii.  16.     2CiiRON.  xvi.  14. 
JOSH.  x.  27.     LAM.  iii.  53.     JOHN  xi.  38.  and  the  Evangelists  concerning  the 
sepulchre  of  Christ. 

14  See  a  description  of  these  Sepulchres,  SERLIO,  Architecture,  L.  iii.  VIL- 
r.ALPANDUs,  Apparat.  Urb.  iii.  16.    MAUNDREL'S  Travels  p.  76. 


64  POETIC  IMAGERY  L.ECT.  VII. 

kings.  One  of  these  is  in  Jerusalem,  and  contains  twenty-four  cells ; 
the  other  containing  twice  that  number,  is  in  a  place  without  the 
city.(A) 

If,  therefore,  we  examine  all  those  passages,  in  which  the  sacred 
writers  have  poetically  described  the  infernal  regions,  we  may,  if  I 
mistake  not,  clearly  perceive  them  intent  upon  this  gloomy  picture, 
which  their  mode  of  sepulture  presented  to  their  view.  That  which 
struck  their  senses  they  delineated  in  their  descriptions  :  we  there 
find  no  exact  account,  no  explicit  mention  of  immortal  spirits ;  not, 
according  to  the  notion  of  some  learned  persons,15  because  they  disbe- 
lieved in  the  existence  of  the  soul  after  death,  but  because  they  had 
no  clear  idea  or  perception  by  which  they  might  explain  where  or  in 
what  manner  it  existed  ;  and  they  were  not  possessed  of  that  subtilty 
of  language,  which  enables  men  to  speak  with  plausibility  on  subjects 
abstruse,  and  remote  from  the  apprehension  of  the  senses,  and  to 
cover  their  ignorance  with  learned  disputation.  The  condition,  the 
form,  the  habitation  of  departed  spirits  were  therefore  concealed 
from  the  Hebrews  equally  with  the  rest  of  mankind.  Nor  did  reve- 
lation afford  them  the  smallest  assistance  on  this  subject ;  not,  per- 
haps, because  the  divine  providence  was  disposed  to  withhold  this 
information  from  them,  but  because  the  present  condition  of  the  hu- 
man mind  renders  it  incapable  of  receiving  it.  For  when  the  un- 
derstanding contemplates  things  distinct  from  body  and  matter,  from 
the  want  of  just  ideas,  it  is  compelled  to  have  recourse  to  such  as  are 
false  and  fictitious,  and  to  delineate  the  incorporeal  world  by  things 
corporeal  and  terrestrial.  Thus,  observing  that  after  death  the  body 
returned  to  the  earth,  and  that  it  was  deposited  in  a  sepulchre,  af- 
ter the  manner  which  has  just  been  described,  a  sort  of  popular  no- 
tion prevailed  among  the  Hebrews,  as  well  as  among  other  nations, 
that  the  life  which  succeeded  the  present  was  to  be  passed  beneath 
the  earth  :  and  to  this  notion  even  the  sacred  prophets  were  obliged 
to  allude  occasionally,  if  they  wished  to  be  understood  by  the  people 
on  this  subject. (B) 

Hence  the  meaning  is  evident,  when  the  deceased  are  said  to 
"  descend  into  the  pit,  to  the  nether  parts  of  the  earth,  to  the  gates 
and  chambers  of  death,  to  the  stony  places,  to  the  sides,  to  the  gates 
of  the  caverns ;"  when  it  is  said,  "that  the  grave  has  swallowed 

15  See  LE  CLERC,  Comment.  Hagiographa :  consult  the  index  for  the  word 
immortalitas. 


LECT.  VII.  FROM  COMMON  LIFE.  65 

them  up,  and  closed  its  mouth  upon  them  ;"  that  "  they  lie  down  in 
the  deep  ;  immersed  in  a  desert  place,  in  the  gulf,  in  thick  darkness, 
in  the  land  of  darkness  and  the  shadow  of  death,  wild,  hideous,  where 
all  is  disorder  and  darkness  :  and  darkness,  as  it  were,  instead  of 
light  diffuseth  its  beams."16 

The  poets  of  other  nations,  amidst  all  their  fictions,  have  yet  re- 
tained a  congenial  picture  of  the  habitations  of  the  dead  :  Thus  the 
tragic  poet  has  admirably  described  the  deep  course  of  Acheron: 

"  Per  speluncas  saxis  structas  asperis,  pendentibus, 
"  Maximis,  ubi  rigida  constat  crassa  caligo  inferum."17 

But  how  grand  and  magnificent  a  scene  is  depicted  by  the  Hebrew 
poets  from  the  same  materials,  in  which  their  deceased  heroes  and 
kings  are  seen  to  advance  from  the  earth  !  Figure  to  yourselves  a  vast, 
dreary,  dark,  sepulchral  cavern,  where  the  kingsof  the  nations  lie,  each 
upon  his  bed  of  dust,  the  arms  of  each  beside  him,  his  sword  under 
his  head,  and  the  graves  of  their  numerous  hosts  round  about  them  : 
Behold  !  the  king  of  Babylon  is  introduced  ;  they  all  rise  and  go  forth 
to  meet  him  ;  and  receive  him  as  he  approaches!  "  Art  thou  also 
come  down  unto  us  ?  Art  thou.  become  like  unto  us  !  Art  thou 
cut  down  and  withered  in  thy  strength,  O  thou  destroyer  of  the  na- 
tions!"18 —  But  I  reluctantly  refrain.  —  It  is  not  for  me,  nor  indeed 
for  human  ability,  to  explain  these  subjects  with  a  becoming  digni- 
ty. You  will  see  this  transcendant  imagery,  yourselves,  better  and 
more  completely  displayed  in  that  triumphal  song,  which  was  com- 
posed by  Isaiah  (the  first  of  all  poets  for  sublimity  and  elegance)  pre- 
vious to  the  death  of  the  king  of  Babylon.19  Ezekiel  has  also  nobly 
illustrated  the  same  scene,  with  similar  machinery,  in  the  last  pro- 
phecy concerning  the  fall  of  Pharaoh  ;  that  remarkable  example  of 
the  terrific,  which  is  indeed  deservedly  accounted  the  peculiar  excel- 
lence of  this  prophet.20(c) 


16  nf!»  ,  also  nia,  or  "iha  ,  Job  xxxiii.  18.    Ps.  xxviii.  1.  et  passim. 
rrflfifrjOr  rrtiphn  "ps  ,  Ezek.  xxxi.14.  xxxii.18.  etPs.  passim.   fati 

Is.  xxxviii.  10.  rnte  ^9V  ,  Job  xxxviii.  17.  Ps.  ix.  14.  t\vo  •»vrrl  ,  Prov.  vii. 
27.  -n  a  lias  ,  Isa.  xiv.  19.  iSa  "^l-  Isa.  xiv.  15.  Ezek.  xxxii.  23.  ins, 
V*i»»  Job.  xvii.  16.  VissJ  IB,  Ps.  cxli.7.  ^sa  ifi,  Ps.  Ixix.  16.  See  also 
Isa.  v.  14.  nVasttt  ,  Ps.  Ixix.  16.  Ixxxviii.  7.  nto^rt  ,  Job  iii.  14,  Ezek. 
xxvi.  20. 

17  Cic.  Tusc.  Queest.  I. 

18  ISAI.  xiv.  9,  18.     EZEK.  xxxii.  19,  21,  &c.     astte  ISAI.  Ivii.  2.    EZEK. 
xxxii.  25.  -{j  dt}xrj,  the  cell  which  receives  the  sarcophagus.      EZEK.  xxxii.  27 
See  1  MACC.  xiii.  29.    EZEK.  xxxii.  22,  23,  24. 

19  ISAI.  xiv.  4—27.  20  EZEK.  xxxii,  18—32. 

9 


LECTURE  VIII. 

OF    POETIC    IMAGERY    FROM    SACRED    TOPICS. 

Imagery  which  is  borrowed  from  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  religion,  peculiarly  liable  to  ob- 
scurity and  mistake — Instances  of  expressions,  which  appear  uncommonly  harsh ;  and  of  oth- 
ers, the  principal  elegance  of  which  would  be  lost,  unless  we  adverted  to  the_  nature  of  the 
sacred  rites — The  exordium  of  the  hundred  and  fourth  psalm  explained. 

THE  present  disquisition  concerning  the  poetical  imagery  of  the 
Hebrews  was  undertaken,  gentlemen,  principally  with  a  view  of 
guarding  you  against  an  error,  which  is  apt  to  mislead  those  who  pe- 
ruse without  sufficient  attention  and  information  writings  of  so  old  a 
date  ;  namely,  that  of  accounting  vulgar,  mean,  or  obscure,  passages 
which  were  probably  accounted  Efrnong  the  most  perspicuous  and 
sublime  by  the  people  to  whom  they  were  addressed.  Now,  if  with 
respect  even  to  that  imagery,  which  is  borrowed  from  objects  of  na- 
ture, and  of  common  life,  (of  which  we  have  just  been  treating)  such 
a  caution  was  proper,  it  will  surely  be  still  more  necessary  with  re- 
spect to  that  which  is  borrowed  from  the  sacred  mysteries  of  religion. 
For  though  much  of  that  imagery  which  was  taken  by  the  Hebrew 
writers  from  the  general  face  of  nature,  or  from  the  customs  of  com- 
mon life,  was  peculiar  to  their  own  country,  yet  much,  it  must  be 
confessed,  was  equally  familiar  to  the  rest  of  the  world  ;  but  that, 
which  was  suggested  by  the  rites  and  ceremonies  of  religion,  was  al- 
together peculiar  to  themselves,  and  was  but  little  known  beyond  the 
limits  of  Judea.  Since,  therefore,  this  topic  in  particular  seems  to 
involve  many  such  difficulties  and  inconveniences,  it  appears  to  me 
deserving  of  a  serious  investigation  ;  and  such  investigation,  I  flatter 
myself,  will  tend  to  restore  in  some  degree  the  real  majesty  of  the 
Hebrew  poetry,  which  seems  to  have  shone  forth  in  former  times 
with  no  ordinary  splendour. 

The  religion  of  the  Hebrews  embraced  a  very  extensive  circle 
of  divine  and  human  economy.  It  not  only  included  all  that  regard- 
ed the  worship  of  God  ;  it  extended  even  to  the  regulation  of  the 
commonwealth,  the  ratification  of  the  laws,  the  forms  and  adminis- 


LECT.  VIII.        POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  SACRED  TOPICS.  67 

tration  of  justice,  and  almost  all  the  relations  of  civil  and  domestic 
life.  With  them  almost  every  point  of  conduct  was  connected  either 
directly  or  indirectly  with  their  religion.  Things  which  were  held 
least  in  esteem  by  other  nations,  bore  among  them  the  sanction  of 
divine  authority,  and  had  a  very  close  alliance  with  both  the  more 
serious  concerns  of  life  and  the  sacred  ceremonies.  On  these  ac- 
counts it  happens,  in  the  first  place,  that  abundance  of  metaphors  oc- 
cur in  the  Hebrew  poetry  deduced  from  sacred  subjects ;  and  further, 
that  there  is  a  necessity  for  the  most  diligent  observation,  lest  that 
very  connexion  with  the  affairs  of  religion  should  escape  us.  For 
should  we  be  mistaken  in  so  material  a  point ;  should  we  erroneous- 
ly account  as  common  or  profane  what  is  in  its  nature  divine  ;  or 
should  we  rank  among  the  mean  and  the  vulgar,  sentiments  and  im- 
ages which  are  sacred  and  sublime  ;  it  is  incredible  how  much  the 
strength  of  the  language,  and  the  force  and  majesty  of  the  ideas, 
will  be  destroyed.  Nothing  in  nature,  indeed,  can  be  so  conducive 
to  the  sublime,  as  those  conceptions  which  are  suggested  by  the  con- 
templation of  the  greatest  of  all  beings  ;  and  when  the  august  form 
of  Religion  presents  itself  to  the  Cental  eye, 

"  — — quaedam  divina  voluptas 
"  Percipit,  atque  horror." 

It  follows  therefore  of  course,  that  the  dignity  of  the  Hebrew  poetry 
must  in  some  measure  be  diminished  in  our  eyes,  since  not  only  the 
connexion  of  the  imagery  with  sacred  things  must  frequently  escape 
our  observation,  but  even  when  it  is  most  apparent,  it  can  scarcely 
strike  us  with  that  force  and  vivacity  with  which  it  must  have  pene- 
trated the  minds  of  the  Hebrews.  The  whole  system  of  the  He- 
brew rites  is  one  great  and  complicated  allegory,  to  the  study  and 
observance  of  which  all  possible  diligence  and  attention  were  inces- 
santly dedicated  by  those  who  were  employed  in  the  sacred  offices. 
On  this  occupation  and  study,  therefore,  all  good  and  considerate 
men  were  intent ;  it  constituted  all  their  business,  all  their  amuse- 
ment ;  it  was  their  treasure  and  their  hope ;  on  this  every  care  and 
every  thought  was  employed  ;  and  the  utmost  sanctity  and  reverence 
distinguished  every  part  of  their  conduct  which  had  any  relation  to 
it.  Much  dignity  and  sublimity  must  also  have  resulted  from  the 
recollection,  which  these  allusions  produced,  of  the  splendour  and 
magnificence  of  the  sacred  rites  themselves  ;  the  force  of  which  upon 
the  minds  of  those  who  had  frequent  opportunities  of  observing  them, 
must  have  been  incredible.  Such  a  solemn  grandeur  attended  these 


68  POETIC  IMAGERY  L.ECT.  VIII. 

rites,  especially  after  the  building  of  Solomon's  temple,  that  although 
we  are  possessed  of  very  accurate  descriptions,  our  imaginations  are 
still  utterly  unable  to  embody  them.  Many  allusions,  therefore,  of 
this  kind,  which  the  Hebrew  poets  found  particularly  energetic,  and 
highly  popular  among  their  countrymen,  may  possibly  appear  to  us 
mean  and  contemptible  ;  since  many  things  which  were  held  by  them 
in  the  highest  veneration,  are  by  us  but  little  regarded,  or  perhaps 
but  little  understood. 

I  shall  subjoin  a  few  examples  of  what  I  have  just  been  remark- 
ing ;  or  rather  I  shall  point  out  a  few  topics,  which  will  of  themselves 
suggest  a  variety  of  examples. 

Much  of  the  Jewish  law  is  employed  in  discriminating  between 
things  clean  and  unclean  ;  in  removing,  and  making  atonement  for 
things  polluted  or  proscribed  :  and  under  these  ceremonies,  as  under 
a  veil  or  covering,  a  meaning  the  most  important  and  sacred  is  con- 
cealed, as  would  be  apparent  from  the  nature  of  them,  even  if  we 
had  not,  besides,  other  clear  and  explicit  authority  for  this  opinion. 
Among  the  rest  are  certain  diseases  and  infirmities  of  the  body,  and 
some  customs  evidently  in  themselffes  indifferent :  these,  on  a  curso- 
ry view,  seem  light  and  trivial :  but  when  the  reasons  of  them  are 
properly  explored,  they  are  found  to  be  of  considerable  importance. 
We  are  not  to  wonder,  therefore,  if  the  sacred  poets  sometimes  have 
recourse  to  these  topics  for  imagery,  even  on  the  most  momentous, 
occasions,  when  they  display  the  general  depravity  inherent  in  the 
human  mind,  or  exprobrate  the  corrupt  manners  of  their  own  people, 
or  when  they  deplore  the  abject  state  of  the  virgin,  the  daughter  of 
Sion,  polluted  and  exposed.1  If  we  consider  these  metaphors  with- 
out any  reference  to  the  religion  of  their  authors,  they  will  doubtless 
appear  in  some  degree  disgusting  and  inelegant ;  if  we  refer  them  to 
their  genuine  source,  to  the  peculiar  rites  of  the  Hebrews,  they  will  be 
found  wanting  neither  in  force  nor  in  dignity.  Of  the  same  nature, 
or  at  least  analogous  to  them,  are  those  ardent  expressions  of  grief  and 
misery,  which  are  poured  forth  by  the  royal  prophet  (who,  indeed,  in 
many  of  those  divine  compositions  personates  a  character  far  more 
exalted  than  his  own;)  especially  when  he  complains,  that  he  is  wast- 
ed and  consumed  with  the  loathsomeness  of  disease,  and  bowed  down 
and  depressed  with  a  burden  of  sin  too  heavy  for  human  nature  to 
sustain.2  On  reading  these  passages,  some,  who  were  but  little  ao 

1  ISAI.  Ixiv.  6.     i.  5,  6, 16.     EZEK.  xxxvi.  17.     LAM.  i.  8,  9, 17.  and  ii.  2. 

2  See  PSAL.  xxxviii. 


LECT.  VIII.  FROM  SACRED  TOPICS.  69 

quainted  with  the  genius  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  have  pretended  to 
inquire  into  the  nature  of  the  disease  with  which  the  poet  was  af- 
fected ;  not  less  absurdly,  in  my  opinion,  than  if  they  had  perplexed 
themselves  to  discover  in  what  river  he  was  plunged,  when  he  com- 
plains that  "  the  deep  waters  had  gone  over  his  soul." 

But  as  there  are  many  passages  in  the  Hebrew  poets,  which  may 
seem  to  require  a  similar  defence,  so  there  are  in  all  probability 
many,  which,  although  they  now  appear  to  abound  in  beauties  and 
elegancies,  would  yet  be  thought  much  more  sublime,  were  they  il- 
lustrated from  those  sacred  rites  to  which  they  allude  ;  and,  as  excel- 
lent pictures,  viewed  in  their  proper  light.  To  this  purpose  many  in- 
stances may  be  produced  from  one  topic,  namely,  from  the  precious 
and  magnificent  ornaments  of  the  priest's  attire.  Such  was  the 
gracefulness,  such  the  magnificence  of  the  sacerdotal  vestments,  es- 
pecially those  of  the  high  priest ;  so  adapted  were  they,  as  Moses 
says,3  to  the  expression  of  glory  and  of  beauty,  that  to  those,  who  were 
impressed  with  an  equal  opinion  of  the  sanctity  of  the  wearer,  nothing 
could  possibly  appear  more  venerable  and  sublime.  To  these,  there- 
fore, we  find  frequent  allusions  in  the  Hebrew  poets,  when  they  have 
occasion  to  describe  extraordinary  beauty  or  comeliness,  or  to  delineate 
the  perfect  form  of  supreme  Majesty.  The  elegant  Isaiah  has  a  most 
beautiful  idea  of  this  kind,  when  he  describes  in  his  own  peculiar 
manner  (that  is,  most  magnificently)  the  exultation  and  glory  of  the 
church,  after  its  triumphal  restoration.  Pursuing  the  allusion,  he 
decorates  her  with  the  vestments  of  salvation,  and  clothes  her  in  the 
robe  of  righteousness.  He  afterwards  compares  the  church  to  a 
bridegroom  dressed  for  the  marriage,  to  which  comparison  incredible 
dignity  is  added  by  the  word  frp^,  a  metaphor  plainly  taken  from 
the  apparel  of  the  priests,  the  force  of  which,  therefore,  no  modern 
language  can  express.4  No  imagery,  indeed,  which  the  Hebrew 
writers  could  employ,  was  equally  adapted  with  this  to  the  display 
(as  far  as  the  human  powers  can  conceive  or  depict  the  subject)  of 
the  infinite  majesty  of  God.  "  JEHOVAH"  is  therefore  introduced  by 
the  Psalmist,  as  "  clothed  with  glory  and  with  strength,"  he  is  gird- 
ed with  power  ;"5  which  are  the  very  terms  appropriated  to  the  de- 
scribing of  the  dress  and  ornaments  of  the  priests. (A) 

Thus  far  may  appear  plain  arid  indisputable  :  but,  if  I  mistake 
not,  there  are  other  passages,  the  beauty  of  which  lies  still  more  re- 

3  EXOD.  xxviii.  2.     See  ECCLUB.  1.  5—13. 

4  ISAI.  Ixi.  10.  5  PSAL.  Ixv.  7.     xciii.  1. 


70  POETIC  IMAGERY  L.ECT.  VIII. 


mote  from  common  observation.  In  that  most  perfect  ode,  which 
celebrates  the  immensity  of  the  Omnipresent  Deity,  and  the  wisdom 
of  the  divine  Artificer  in  forming  the  human  body,  the  author  uses  a 
metaphor  derived  from  the  most  subtile  art  of  the  Phrygian  work- 
man : 

"  Cum  formatus  essem  in  occulto, 

"  Acupictus  essem  in  penetralibus  terrae."6 

Whoever  observes  this,  (in  truth  he  will  not  be  able  to  observe  it  in 
the  common  translations)  and  at  the  same  time  reflects  upon  the  won- 
derful mechanism  of  the  human  body,  the  various  implications  of  the 
veins,  arteries,  fibres,  and  membranes;  the  "indescribable  texture" 
of  the  whole  fabric ;  may,  indeed,  feel  the  beauty  and  gracefulness 
of  this  well-adapted  metaphor,  but  will  miss  much  of  its  force  and 
sublimity,  unless  he  be  apprized  that  the  art  of  designing  in  needle- 
work was  wholly  dedicated  to  the  use  of  the  sanctuary,  and,  by  a  di- 
rect precept  of  the  divine  law,  chiefly  employed  in  furnishing  a  part 
of  the  sacerdotal  habit,  and  the  veils  for  the  entrance  of  the  taberna- 
cle.7 Thus,  the  poet  compares  the  wisdom  of  the  divine  artificer 
with  the  most  estimable  of  human  arts,  that  art  which  was  dignified 
by  being  consecrated  altogether  to  the  use  of  religion  ;  and  the 
workmanship  of  which  was  so  exquisite,  that  even  the  sacred  writ- 
ings seem  to  attribute  it  to  a  supernatural  guidance.8(B) 

I  will  instance  also  another  topic,  which,  if  I  am  not  deceived, 
will  suggest  several  remarkable  examples  to  this  purpose.  There  is 
one  of  the  Hebrew  poems,  which  has  been  long  since  distinguished 
by  universal  approbation  ;  the  subject  is  the  wisdom  and  design  of 
the  Creator  in  the  formation  of  the  universe  :  you  will  easily  per- 
ceive that  I  have  in  view  the  hundred  and  fourth  Psalm.  The  exor- 
dium is  most  sublime,  and  consists  of  a  delineation  of  the  divine 
majesty  and  power,  as  exemplified  in  the  admirable  constitution  of 
nature.  On  this  subject,  since  it  is  absolutely  necessary  to  employ 
figurative  language,  the  poet  has  introduced  such  metaphors  as  were 
accounted  by  the  Hebrews  the  most  magnificent  and  most  worthy  ; 
for  all  of  them  are,  in  my  opinion,  borrowed  from  the  tabernacle.: 
but  I  find  it  will  be  necessary  to  quote  the  passage  itself,  and  I  shall 
endeavour  to  explain  it  as  briefly  as  possible. 

6  PSALM  cxxxix.  15. 

7  EXOD.  xxviii.  39.  xxvi.  36.  xxvii.  16.     Compare  EZEK.  xvi.  10, 13, 18. 
3  See  EXOD.  xxxv.  30—35. 


.  VIII.  FROM  SACRED  TOPICS.  71 

The  poet  first  expresses  his  sense  of  the  greatness  and  power  of 
the  Deity  in  plain  and  familiar  language ;  and  then  breaks  out  in 
metaphor : 

"  Thou  art  invested  with  majesty  and  glory  :" 

Where  observe  the  word  tiJib  (to  invest)  is  the  word  always  used  to 
express  the  ceremony  of  putting  on  the  sacerdotal  ornaments. 

"  Covering  thyself  with  light  as  with  a  garment :" 

The  light  in  the  Holy  of  Holies,  the  manifest  symbol  of  the  divine 
presence,  is  figured  under  this  idea  ;  and  this  singular  example  is 
made  use  of  figuratively  to  express  the  universal  and  ineffable  glory 
of  God.9 

'{  Stretching  out  the  heavens  as  a  curtain  :" 

fi^*1^ 'is  the  word  made  use  of,  and  is  the  very  name  of  those  cur- 
tains with  which  the  tabernacle  was  covered  at  the  top  and  round 
about.  The  Seventy  seem  to  have  had  this  in  view,  when  they  ren- 
der it  waft,  dfpQiv  (as  a  skin  :)  whence  the  vulgate  sicut  pellem 
(which  is  a  literal  translation  of  the  Septuagint ;)  and  another  of  the 
old  translators  dfQpa  (a  hide  or  skin.)10 

"  Laying  the  beams  of  his  chambers  in  the  waters  :" 

In  these  words  the  poet  admirably  expresses  the  nature  of  the  air, 
which,  from  various  and  floating  elements,  is  formed  into  one  regu- 
lar and  uniform  mass,  by  a  metaphor  drawn  from  the  singular  con- 
struction of  the  tabernacle  :  for  it  consisted  of  many  different  parts, 
which  might  be  easily  separated,  but  which  were  united  by  a  curi- 
ous and  artful  junction  and  adaptation  to  each  other.  He  proceeds  : 

"  Making  the  clouds  his  chariot ; 

"  Walking  upon  the  wings  of  the  wind  :" 

He  had  before  exhibited  the  divine  Majesty  under  the  appearance 
which  it  assumed  in  the  Holy  of  Holies,  that  of  a  bright  and  daz- 
zling light :  he  now  describes  it  according  to  that  which  it  assumed, 
when  God  accompanied  the  ark  in  the  pillar  of  a  cloud,  which  was 
carried  along  through  the  atmosphere.  That  vehicle  of  the  divine 
presence  is,  indeed,  distinguished  in  the  sacred  history  by  the  par- 
ticular appellation  of  a  chariot.11 

"  Making  the  winds  his  messengers, 

"  And  his  ministers  a  flaming  fire  :" 

9  See  EXOD.  xl.  34—38.     LEV.  xvi.  2.     NUMB.  ix.  15, 16.     1  KINGS  viii.  10, 
11.    2  CHRON.  vii.  1,  2.     A  similar  allusion  ISAI.  iv.  5.    Ix.  2, 19.    ZECH.  ii. 
5.     Rev.  xxi.  23. 

10  Compare  EXOD.  xxvi.  7,  &c.  with  the  SEPTUAGINT. 

11  2  CHRON.  xxviii.  18.    See  also  ECCLUS.  xlix.  8. 


72  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  SACRED  TOPICS.          L,ECT.VIII. 

The  elements  are  described  as  prompt  and  ready  in  executing  the 
commands  of  JEHOVAH,  as  angels,  messengers,  or  ministers  serving 
at  the  tabernacle,  the  Hebrew  word  being  exactly  expressive  of  the 
latter  sense. 

"  Who  founded  the  earth  upon  its  bases  :" 
The  following  phrase  also  is  directly  taken  from  the  same  : 

"  That  it  should  not  be  displaced  forever  :" 

That  is,  "  for  a  certain  period  known  only  to  the  infinite  wisdom  of 
God."  As  the  situation  of  both  was  in  this  respect  nearly  the  same, 
so,  on  the  other  hand,  the  permanence  of  the  sanctuary  is  in  other 
places  compared,  and  in  almost  the  same  words,  with  the  stability  of 
the  earth.12(c)  (D) 

Perhaps,  in  pursuing  this  investigation  with  so  much  subtilty  and 
minuteness,  I  have  scarcely  acted  consistently  with  the  customs  of 
this  place,  or  the  nature  of  my  design  :  but  it  appeared  absolutely  ne- 
cessary so  to  do,  in  order  to  make  myself  perfectly  understood  ;  and  to 
demonstrate,  that  it  is  scarcely  or  not  at  all  possible  for  any  transla- 
tion fully  to  represent  the  genuine  sense  of  the  sacred  poets,  and  that 
delicate  connexion  which  for  the  most  part  exists  between  their  po- 
etical imagery,  and  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  their  nation.  This 
connexion  frequently  depends  upon  the  use  of  certain  terms,  upon  a 
certain  association  between  words  and  things,  which  a  translation 
generally  perplexes,  and  very  frequently  destroys.  This,  therefore, 
is  not  to  be  preserved  in  the  most  literal  and  accurate  version,  much 
less  in  any  poetical  translation,  or  rather  imitation  :  though  there  are 
extant  some  not  unsuccessful  attempts  of  this  kind.  To  relish  com- 
pletely all  the  excellencies  of  the  Hebrew  literature,  the  fountains 
themselves  must  be  approached,  the  peculiar  flavour  of  which  can- 
not be  conveyed  by  aqueducts,  or  indeed  by  any  exertion  of  modern 
art.(E) 

12  PSAL.  Ixxviii.  69. 


LECTURE  IX. 


OF  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  THE  SACRED  HISTORY. 

The  imagery  from  the  sacred  history  is  the  most  luminous  and  evident  of  all — The  peculiar  na- 
ture of  this  kind  of  metaphor  explained,  as  used  by  the  Hebrew  poets — The  order  of  the  top- 
ics which  commonly  furnish  them  :  the  Chaos  and  Creation  ;  the  Deluge  ;  the  destruction  of 
Sodom  ;  the  emigration  of  the  Israelites  from  Egypt ;  the  descent  of  God  upon  mount  Sinai — 
This  species  of  metaphor  excellently  adapted  to  the  sacred  poetry,  and  particularly  to  the  pro- 
phetic; not  easy  to  form  any  comparison  between  the  sacred  and  profane  poetry  in  this  respect. 

FOUR  distinct  classes  of  imagery  having  been  specified  as  capa- 
ble of  being  introduced  in  a  metaphorical  form  into  the  poetry  of 
the  Hebrews,  the  last  of  these,  or  that  which  is  suggested  by  the 
more  remarkable  transactions  recorded  in  the  sacred  history,  now 
remains  to  be  examined.  Here,  however,  since  the  nature  of  the 
subject  diners  in  some  degree  from  the  former  objects  of  our  in- 
vestigation, so  the  manner  of  treating  it  must  be  also  different. 
The  principal  design  of  our  late  disquisition  was,  by  considering  the 
circumstances,  customs,  opinions,  and  sentiments  of  the  Hebrews, 
to  facilitate  our  approach  to  the  interior  beauties  of  their  poetry ;  and 
by  duly  examining  the  nature  of  the  circumstances,  to  estimate  more 
properly  the  force  and  power  of  each  :  to  dispel  as  much  as  possible 
the  mists  of  antiquity  ;  to  restore  their  native  perspicuity  to  such 
passages  as  appear  obscure,  their  native  agreeableness  to  such  as 
now  inspire  us  with  sentiments  of  disgust,  their  proper  allurement 
and  elegance  to  those  which  seem  harsh  and  vulgar,  and  their 
original  dignity  to  those  which  the  changeableness  of  custom  has 
rendered  contemptible  or  mean.  In  this  division  of  our  subject,  on 
the  contrary,  but  little  will  occur  either  difficult  or  obscure  ;  noth- 
ing which  will  seem  to  require  explication  or  defence  ;  all  will  be  at 
once  perspicuous,  splendid,  and  sublime.  Sacred  history  illumin- 
ates this  class  of  imagery  with  its  proper  light,  and  renders  it 
scarcely  less  conspicuous  to  us  than  to  the  Hebrews  themselves. 
There  is,  indeed,  this  difference,  that  to  the  Hebrews  the  objects  of 
these  allusions  were  all  national  and  domestic  ;  and  the  power  of 
them  in  moving  or  delighting  the  mind  was  of  course  proportionably 
greater ;  nay,  frequently,  the  very  place,  the  scene  of  action,  cer- 

10 


74  POETIC  IMAGERY  PROM  L.ECT.  IX. 

tain  traces,  and  express  tokens  of  so  many  miracles  lying  before  their 
eyes,  must  have  increased  the  effect.  To  us,  on  the  other  hand, 
however  we  may  hold  these  facts  in  veneration,  however  great  and 
striking  they  may  be  in  themselves,  the  distance  of  time  and  place 
must  of  necessity  render  them  less  interesting. 

The  manner  in  which  these  metaphors  are  formed,  is  well  deserv- 
ing of  observation,  and  is  in  fact  as  follows.  In  describing  or  em- 
bellishing illustrious  actions,  or  future  events  of  a  miraculous  nature, 
the  Hebrew  poets  are  accustomed  to  introduce  allusions  to  the  ac- 
tions of  former  times,  such  as  possess  a  conspicuous  place  in  their 
history  ;  and  thus  they  illuminate  with  colours,  foreign  indeed^  but 
similar,  the  future  by  the  past,  the  recent  by  the  antique,  facts  less 
known  by  others  more  generally  understood  :  and  as  this  property 
seems  peculiar  to  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews,  at  least  is  but  seldom 
to  be  met  with  in  that  of  other  nations,  I  have  determined  to  illus- 
trate this  part  of  my  subject  with  a  greater  variety  of  examples  than 
usual.  I  mean,  therefore,  to  instance  in  a  regular  order  certain  top- 
ics or  common-places  of  Scripture,  which  seem  to  have  furnished,  if 
not  all,  at  least  the  principal  part  of  these  allusions :  it  will  be  neces- 
sary at  the  same  time  to  remark  their  figurative  power  and  effect, 
and  the  regular  and  uniform  method  pursued  in  the  application  of 
them,  which  has  been  already  stated  as  characteristical  of  the  poeti- 
cal imagery  of  the  Hebrews. 

The  first  of  these  topics,  or  common-places,  is  the  Chaos  and  the 
Creation,  which  compose  the  first  pages  of  the  sacred  history.  These 
are  constantly  alluded  to,  as  expressive  of  any  remarkable  change, 
whether  prosperous  or  adverse,  in  the  public  affairs  ;  of  the  over- 
throw or  restoration  of  kingdoms  and  nations  :  and  are  consequently 
very  common  in  the  prophetic  poetry,  particularly  when  any  unusual 
degree  of  boldness  is  attempted.  If  the  subject  be  the  destruction  of 
the  Jewish  empire  by  the  Chaldeans,  or  a  strong  denunciation  of 
ruin  against  the  enemies  of  Israel,  it  is  depicted  in  exactly  the  same 
colours,  as  if  universal  nature  were  about  to  relapse  into  the  primeval 
chaos.  Thus  Jeremiah,  in  that  sublime,  and  indeed  more  than  poet- 
ical vision,  in  which  is  represented  the  impending  desolation  of 
Judea : 

"  Aspexi  terrain,  ecce  autem  vacua  est  et  informis ; 

"  Et  ad  coelos,  nee  lucent  amplius  ! 

"  Aspexi  montes,  ecce  autem  intremiscunt, 

"  Omnesque  colles  inter  se  raptim  concutiuntur  ! 

"  Aspexi,  et  ecce  nullus  est  homo, 


.  IX.  THE  SACRED  HISTORY. 


"  Volucresque  coeli  omnes  evanuerunt  ! 

"  Aspexi,  et  ecce  Carmelum  desertum, 

"  Et  omnes  eius  urbes  dirutas  ! 

"  A  vultu  lehovae,  ab  aestu  irae  eius  flagrantis."1 

And  on  a  similar  subject  Isaiah  expresses  himself  with  wonderful 
force  and  sublimity  : 

"  Et  extendet  super  earn  lineam  vastitatis  et  perpendiculum  confusionis."2 

Each  of  them  not  only  had  in  his  mind  the  Mosaic  chaos,  but  actu- 
ally uses  the  words  of  the  divine  historian.  The  same  subjects  are 
amplified  and  embellished  by  the  prophets  with  several  adjuncts  : 

"  Nigrescent  sol  et  luna  ; 

"  Retrahentque  splendorem  suum  stellae  : 

"  Et  ex  Sione  rugiet  lehova, 

"  Et  ex  Hierosolymis  edet  vocem  ; 

"  Et  commovebuntur  coeli  et  tellus."3 

"  Et  contabescet  omnis  coelorum  exercitus  ; 

"  Coeli  etiam  ipsi  instar  schedulae  convolventur  : 

"  Et  omnis  eorum  exercitus  decidet, 

"  Sicut  cassa  de  vite  folia, 

"  Utque  marcida  ex  arbore  sua  ficus."4 

On  the  contrary,  when  he  foretels  the  restoration  of  the  Israelites  : 

"  At  Ego  Jehova  sum  Deus  tuus, 

"  Qui  subito  tranquillat  mare,  cum  fremunt  fluctus  eius; 

li  Nomen  illi  lehova  exercituum  : 

"  Indidi  verba  mea  ori  tuo, 

"  Et  sub  umbra  manus  meae  te  protexi  : 

"  Ut  plantem  coelos,  ut  fundem  terram, 

"  Utque  dicam  Sioni,  meus  tu  es  populus."5(A) 

"  Nam  solatur  lehova  Sionem, 

"  Solatur  omnes  eius  vastitates  : 

"  Et  reddet  deserta  eius  Edeni  similia, 

"  Et  solitudinem  eius  ut  Paradisum  Jehovae  : 

"  Reperietur  in  ea  laetitia  et  gaudium  ; 

"  Gratiarum  actio,  et  cantionum  sonitus."6 

In  the  former  of  these  two  last  quoted  examples,  the  universal  deluge 
is  exactly  delineated,  and  on  similar  subjects  the  same  imagery  gen- 
erally occurs.  Thus,  as  the  devastation  of  the  holy  land  is  frequent- 


1  JER.  iv.  23 — 26.  4  ISAI.  xxxiv.  4. 

2  ISAI.  xxxiv.  11.  5  ISAI.  li.  15, 16. 

3  Joel  iii.  15, 16.  «  ISAI.  li.  3. 


76  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  L.ECT.  IX. 

Iy  represented  by  the  restoration  of  ancient  chaos,  so  the  same  event 
is  sometimes  expressed  in   metaphors  suggested  by  the   universal 

deluge : 

"  Ecce  lehova  evacuat  terrain,  eamque  vastat ; 

"  Et  invertit  faciem  eius,  et  dispergit  incolas. — 

"  Nam  aperiuntur  ex  alto  Cataractae, 

"  Et  fundamenta  terrae  concutiuntur. 

"  Confringendo  confringit  se  tellus ; 

"  Disrumpendo  disrumpit  se  tellus  ; 

"  Commovendo  penitus  commovetur  tellus  : 

"  Nutando  nutat  tellus,  sicut  ebrius ; 

"  Et  e  loco  suo  vacillat,  ut  tugurium  unius  noctis."7 

These  are  great  ideas ;  indeed  the  human  mind  cannot  easily 
conceive  any  thing  greater  or  more  sublime.  There  is  nothing, 
however,  of  this  kind  more  forcible  and  elevated  than  that  imagery 
which  is  taken  from  the  destruction  of  Sodom,  that  being  the  next 
in  order  of  these  topics,  and  generally  applied  to  express  the  punish- 
ments to  be  inflicted  by  the  Almighty  on  the  wicked  : 

"  Depluet  super  impios  prunas  ardentes, 

"  Ignem  et  sulphur  et  ventum  turbinum  :    hoc  iis  poculum  exhauri- 
"  endum  est."8(n) 

"  Nam  agitur  dies  ultionis  lehovae  ; 

"  Annus  poenarum  sumendarum  Sionis  vindici : 

"  Et  vertentur  torrentes  eius  in  picem, 

"  Et  pulvis  eius  in  sulphur ; 

"  Et  terra  eius  in  ardentem  picem  redigetur  : 

"  Noctes  diesque  inextincta  ardebit : 

"  Fumus  eius  in  aeternum  ascendet : 

"  In  perpetuas  aetates  iacebit  deserta ; 

"  Per  infinita  saecula  nemo  earn  peragrabit."9(c) 

The  emigration  of  the  Israelites  from  Egypt,  as  it  affords  materi- 
als for  many  magnificent  descriptions,  is  commonly  applied  in  a  met- 
aphorical manner  to  many  events,  which  bear  no  unapt  resemblance 
to  it.  Does  God  promise  to  his  people  liberty,  assistance,  security, 
and  favour  1  The  Exodus  occurs  spontaneously  to  the  mind  of  the 
poet ;  the  dividing  of  the  sea,  the  destruction  of  the  enemy,  the  des- 
ert which  was  safely  traversed,  and  the  torrents  bursting  forth  from 
the  rocks,  are  so  many  splendid  objects  that  force  themselves  on  his 

imagination : 

"  Ita  edicit  lehova, 

"  Qui  praebet  per  aequor  viam, 

"'  ISAI.  xxiv.  1, 18, 19,  20.         8  PSAL.  xi.  6.  9  ISAI,  xxxiv.  8,  9, 10. 


.  IX.  THE  SACRED  HISTORY.  77 

"  Et  per  aquas  validas  semitam : 

"  Qui  educit  currum  et  equura,  exercitum  et  robur ; 

"  Simul  iacebunt,  nunquain  consurgent, 

"  Oppress!  sunt,  ut  stupa  extincti : 

"  Ne  recolite  priora, 

"  Et  antiqua  ne  considerate  : 

"  Ecce  ego  novum  quiddam  sum  facturus  ; 

"  lamiam  orietur ;  nonne  illud  cognoscetis  ? 

"  Praestabo  etiam  in  solitudine  viam  ; 

"  In  deserto  flumina."lO 

There  is  also  another  prophecy  of  the  same  divine  poet,  which  in  one 
sense  (though  I  think  not  the  principal)  is  to  be  understood  as  re- 
lating to  the  liberation  of  the  Israelites  from  the  Babylonish  captivity. 
In  the  exordium  the  same  imagery  is  introduced,  but  in  a  very  noble 
personification,  than  which  nothing  can  be  more  sublime : 

"  Expergiscere,expergiscere,  indue  robur,  o  lacerte  lehovae  ! 

"  Expergiscere,  ut  priscis  diebus,  aetatibus  antiquis  ! 

"  Annon  tu  ille  es,  qui  excidisti  superbum,  vulnerasti  crocodilum  ? 

"  Annon  tu  ille  es,  qui  exsiccasti  pelagus,  aquas  Abyssi  magnae  ? 

"  Qui  maris  profunda  reddidisti  pervia,  ut  redempti  transirent  ?"H 

Of  the  same  kind  is  the  last  of  these  topics  which  I  shall  in- 
stance, the  descent  of  JEHOVAH  at  the  delivery  of  the  law.  When 
the  Almighty  is  described  as  coming  to  execute  judgement,  to  deliv- 
er the  pious,  and  to  destroy  his  enemies,  or  in  any  manner  exerting 
his  divine  power  upon  earth,  the  description  is  embellished  from 
that  tremendous  scene  which  was  exhibited  upon  mount  Sinai  :12 
there  is  no  imagery  more  frequently  recurred  to  than  this,  and  there 
is  none  more  sublime  :  I  will  only  trouble  you*  with  two  examples  : 

"  Ecce  autern  lehova  e  loco  suo  prodit; 

"  Et  descendit,  et  super  terrae  fastigia  graditur. 

"  Et  subter  ilium  liquescunt  montes, 

"  Et  valles  sese  discindunt : 

"  Instar  cerae  ante  ignem ; 

"  Instar  aquarum  per  declive  praecipitantium."13 

"  Turn  concussa  est  et  intremuit  tellus ; 

"  Etfundamenta  montium  commoventur, 

"  Vehementer  conquassantur ;  nam  ira  illius  exaestuat. 

"  Ascendit  fumus  in  eius  nares ; 

"  Et  e  faucibus  eius  ignis  edax  ; 

"  Exeunt  ab  eo  ardentes  prunae. 

"  Inclinat  coelos,  et  descendit; 

10  ISAI.  xliii.  16—19.     See  also  xlviii.  21.  "  ISAI.  li.  9, 10. 

12  See  EXOD.  xix.  16,  28.     DEUT.  iv.  11, 12.  13  MIC.  i.  3,  4. 


78  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  LfiCT.  IX. 

"  Sub  pedibus  eius  caligo  densa  : 

"  Et  inequitat  Cherubo,  et  Tolat  ; 

"  Et  fertur  super  alls  venti. 

"  Facit  tenebras  penetrale  suum, 

"  Tabernaculum  sibi  circum  undique  ; 

"  Tenebras  aquarum,  densa  nubium. 

"  A  fulgore  praesentiae  eius  nubes  diffugiunt  ; 

"  Emicat  grando  prunaeque  candentes. 

"  Turn  intonat  e  coelo  lehova, 

"  Et  altissimus  editvocem  suam, 

"  Cum  grandine  prunisque  candentibus  : 

"  Et  telis  suis  hostes  dissipat, 

"  Et  crebris  fulguribus  attonitos  agit."14(D) 

These  examples,  though  literally  translated,  and  destitute  of  the 
harmony  of  verse,  will  I  think  sufficiently  demonstrate  the  force,  the 
grandeur  and  sublimity  of  these  images,  which,  when  applied  to  oth- 
er events,  suggest  ideas  still  greater,  than  when  described  as  plain 
facts  by  the  pen  of  the  historian,  in  however  magnificent  terms  :  for 
to  the  greatness  and  sublimity  of  the  images  which  are  alluded  to,  is 
added  the  pleasure  and  admiration  which  results  from  the  compari- 
son between  them  and  the  objects  which  they  are  brought  to  illus- 
trate. 

It  is,  however,  worthy  of  observation,  that,  since  many  of  these 
images  possess  such  a  degree  of  resemblance  as  renders  them  equal- 
ly fit  for  the  illustration  of  the  same  objects,  it  frequently  happens 
that  several  of  them  are  collected  together,  in  order  to  magnify  and 
embellish  some  particular  event  :  of  this  there  is  an  example  in  that 
very  thanksgiving  ode  of  David,  which  we  have  just  now  quoted.15 
For,  after  describing  the  wrath  and  majesty  of  God,  in  imagery  tak- 
en from  the  descent  upon  mount  Sinai,  as  already  explained,  in  the 
very  next  verse,  the  division  of  the  Red  Sea  and  the  river  Jordan  is 
alluded  to  : 

"  Turn  apparebant  alvei  aquarum  ; 

"  Retegebantur  orbis  fundamenta  : 

"  Ab  increpatione  tua,  o  lehova; 

"  Ab  halitu  spiritus  irae  tuae."16 

It  is  evident,  however,  as  well  from  the  examples  which  have 
been  adduced,  as  from  the  nature  of  the  thing  itself,  that  this  species 


.  xviii.  7—14. 

15  See  also  ISAI.  xxxiv.  and  what  is  remarked  on  that  passage,  Lect.  XX. 

16  PSAL.  xviii.  16. 


.  IX.  THE  SACRED  HISTORY.  79 

of  metaphor  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  prophetic  poetry.  For  some 
degree  of  obscurity  is  the  necessary  attendant  upon  prophecy ;  not 
that,  indeed,  which  confuses  the  diction,  and  darkens  the  style ;  but 
that  which  results  from  the  necessity  of  repressing  a  part  of  the  fu- 
ture, and  from  the  impropriety  of  making  a  complete  revelation  of 
every  circumstance  connected  with  the  prediction.  The  event  itself, 
therefore,  is  often  clearly  indicated,  but  the  manner  and  the  circum- 
stances are  generally  involved  in  obscurity.  To  this  purpose  image- 
ry such  as  we  have  specified,  is  excellently  adapted,  for  it  enables 
the  prophet  more  forcibly  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  his  auditors 
those  parts  of  his  subject  which  admit  of  amplification,  the  force,  the 
splendour,  the  magnitude  of  every  incident ;  and  at  the  same  time 
more  completely  to  conceal,  what  are  proper  to  be  concealed,  the  or- 
der, the  mode,  and  the  minuter  circumstances  attending  the  event. 
It  is  also  no  less  apparent,  that  in  this  respect  the  sacred  poetry 
bears  little  or  no  analogy  to  that  of  other  nations ;  since  neither  his- 
tory nor  fable  afforded  to  the  profane  writers  a  sufficiently  important 
store  of  this  kind  of  imagery ;  nor  did  their  subjects  in  general  re- 
quire that  use  or  application  of  it. 

This  species  of  metaphor  is  indeed  so  adapted,  as  I  before  ob- 
served, to  the  nature  of  prophecy,  that  even  profane  poetry,  when  of 
the  prophetic  kind,  is  not  altogether  destitute  of  it :  and  we  find  that 
Virgil  himself,  in  delivering  his  prophecies,  has  more  than  once 
adopted  this  method  : 

"  Non  Simois  tibi,  nee  Xanthus,  nee  Dorica  Castra 

"  Defuerint :  alius  Latio  iam  partus  Achilles, 

"  Natus  et  ipse  Dea. 

"  Alter  erit  turn  Tithys,  et  altera  quae  vehat  Argo 

"  Delectos  heroas  :  erunt  etiam  altera  bella, 

"  Atque  iterum  ad  Troiam  magnus  mittetur  Achilles  :"17 

Though  some  will  perhaps  be  inclined  to  interpret  this  passage  lite- 
rally from  the  completion  of  the  great  year,  and  the  doctrine  of  the 
general  restitution  of  all  things.18  There  is,  indeed,  this  difference 
between  the  sacred  and  profane  writers,  that  among  the  latter  we 
find  frequent  examples  of  metaphors  taken  from  some  remarkable 
person  and  event,  applied  t6  some  other  event  or  character ;  but  we 
never  find  from  such  facts  a  general  or  common  image  derived, 

17  Virgil,  Mn.  vi.  135.     Eclog.  iv.  41. 

18  See  ORIGEN  contra  Celsum,  Lib.  iv.  p.  208.     Edit.  Spencer. 


80  POETIC  IMAGERY  FROM  SACRED  HISTORY.  L.ECT.  IX. 


which,  as  an  established  mode  of  expression,  is  regularly  applied  to 
the  illustration  of  similar  objects,  even  to  the  designation  of  a  univer- 
sal or  unlimited  idea.(E) 

I  have  classed  all  these  examples  under  one  general  head  of  met- 
aphor, though  many  or  them  might  more  properly  be  referred  to  that 
of  allegory  :  but  this  circumstance  is  of  no  importance  to  the  object 
which  I  was  desirous  of  elucidating.  Many,  indeed,  of  those  which 
I  have  produced  on  this  last  occasion,  might  more  properly  be  refer- 
red to  that  sublimer  kind  of  allegory,  which,  in  its  principal  view, 
looks  forward  to  a  meaning  much  more  important  than  that  which 
is  obvious  and  literal ;  and  under  the  ostensible  subject,  as  under  a 
rind  or  shell,  conceals  one  interior  and  more  sacred.  Of  this,  how- 
ever, we  shall  presently  have  occasion  to  speak  more  explicitly  ;  for 
when  we  come  to  treajt  of  the  allegory  of  the  Hebrews,  it  will  be  ne- 
cessary to  touch  upon  that  species  (however  difficult  and  obscure  the 
subject)  in  which  the  sublimity  of  many  of  the  sacred  poems  will 
be  found  chiefly  to  consist.(r) 


LECTURE  X. 


OF  ALLEGORY. 

Three  forms  of  allegory :  1 .  Continued  Metaphor  ;  which  is  scarcely  worth  distinguishing  from 
the  simple  Metaphor— The  freedom  of  the  Hebrews  in  confounding  the  forms  of  the  Meta- 
phor, Allegory,  and  Comparison :  a  more  perfect  form  also  of  Allegory  instanced — 2.  The 
Parable  ;  and  its  principal  characteristics :  that  it  ought  to  be  formed  from  an  apt  and  well 
known  image.,  the  signification  of  which  is  obvious  and  definite  ,  also  from  one  which  is  ele- 
gant and  beautiful  ;  that  its  parts  and  adjuncts  be  perspicuous,  and  conduce  to  the  main  ob- 
ject ;  that  it  be  consistent,  and  must  not  confound  the  literal  and  figurative  meaning — The 
Parables  of  the  Prophets,  and  particularly  of  E/ekiel,  examined  according  to  this  standard. 

ANOTHER  branch  of  the  b'£tt  or  figurative  style,  is  Allegory, 
that  is,  a  figure  which,  under  the  literal  sense  of  the  words,  con- 
ceals a  foreign  or  distant  meaning.  Three  forms  of  allegory  may 
be  observed  in  the  sacred  poetry.  The  first  is  that  which  is 
commonly  treated  of  by  rhetoricians,  a  continuation  of  metaphor. 
"  When  several  kindred  metaphors  succeed  one  another,  they  alter," 
says  Cicero,  "  the  form  of  a  composition  ;  for  which  reason  a  suc- 
cession of  this  kind  is  called  by  the  Greeks  an  Allegory ;  and  pro- 
perly, in  respect  to  the  etymology  of  the  word  ;  but  Aristotle,  instead 
of  considering  it  as  a  new  species  of  figure,  has  more  judiciously 
comprised  such  modes  of  expression  under  the  general  appellation 
of  metaphors."1  I  therefore  scarcely  esteem  it  worth  while  to  dwell 
upon  this  species  of  allegory ;  since  hitherto  I  have  made  no  distinc- 
tion between  it  and  the  simple  metaphor  :  for  many  of  the  examples, 
which  I  produced  as  metaphors,  are  probably  of  this  class  :  the  prin- 
ciple of  each  is  the  same,  nor  indeed  would  it  be  an  easy  matter  to 
restrict  each  to  its  proper  limits,  or  to  define  where  the  one  ends  or 
the  other  begins. 

It  will  not,  however,  be  foreign  to  our  purpose  to  remark  the  pe- 
culiar manner,  in  which  the  Hebrew  poets  use  the  congenial  figures, 
metaphor,  allegory,  and  comparison,  and  particularly  in  the  prophet- 
ic poetry.  When  they  undertake  to  express  any  sentiment  in  orna- 
mented language,  they  not  only  illustrate  it  with  an  abundance  and 
variety  of  imagery,  but  they  seldom  temper  or  regulate  this  imagery 

1  Orator. 

11 


82  ALLEGORY.  LiECT.  X. 

by  any  fixed  principle  or  standard.  Unsatisfied  with  a  simple  met- 
aphor, they  frequently  run  it  into  an  allegory,  or  mingle  with  it  a 
direct  comparison.  The  allegory  sometimes  precedes  and  sometimes 
follows  the  simile ;  to  this  is  added  a  frequent  change  of  imagery, 
and  even  of  persons  and  tenses  ;  through  the  whole  displaying  a 
degree  of  boldness  and  freedom,  unconfined  by  rule  or  method,  al- 
together peculiar  to  the  Hebrew  poetry. 

"  Judah  is  a  lion's  whelp  :"2 

This  metaphor  is  immediately  drawn  out  into  an  allegory,  with  a 
change  of  person  : 

"  From  the  prey,  my  son,  thou  art  gone  up ;" 

(to  the  dens  in  the  mountains,  understood:)  In  the  succeeding  sen- 
tences the  person  is  again  changed,  the  image  is  gradually  advanced, 
and  the  metaphor  is  joined  with  a  comparison,  which  is  repeated  : 

"  He  stoopeth  down,  he  coucheth,  as  a  lion, 
"  And  as  a  lioness  ;  who  shall  rouse  him  ?" 

Of  a  simular  nature  is  that  remarkable  prophecy,  in  which  the  exu- 
berant increase  of  the  gospel  on  its  first  dissemination  is  most  expli- 
citly foretold.  In  this  passage,  however,  the  mixture  of  the  metaphor 
and  comparison,  as  well  as  the  ellipsis  of  the  word  to  be  repeated, 
creates  a  degree  of  obscurity  : 

"  Beyond  the  womb  of  the  morning  is  the  dew  of  thy  offspring  to  thee  :"3 
That  is,  "  preferable  to  the  dew  which  proceeds  from  the  womb  of 
morning;  more  copious,  more  abundant."     In  the  interpretation  of 
this  passage,  what  monstrous  blunders  has  an  ignorance  of  the  He- 
brew idiom  produced !  (A) 

There  is,  indeed,  a  certain  form,  which  this  kind  of  allegory 
sometimes  assumes,  more  perfect  and  regular,  which  therefore  ought 
not  to  be  overlooked,  and  that  is,  when  it  occupies  the  whole  com- 
pass and  argument  of  the  composition.  An  excellent  example  of 
this  may  be  seen  in  that  well  known  allegory  of  Solomon,4  in  which 
old  age  is  so  admirably  depicted.  The  inconveniences  of  increasing 
years,  the  debility  of  mind  and  body,  the  torpor  of  the  senses,  are 
expressed,  most  learnedly  and  elegantly  indeed,  but  with  some  de- 
gree of  obscurity,  by  different  images  derived  from  nature  and  com- 
mon life :  for  by  this  enigmatical  composition,  Solomon,  after  the 
manner  of  the  Oriental  sages,  meant  to  put  to  trial  the  acuteness  of 
his  readers.  It  has  on  this  account  afforded  much  exercise  to  the 

2  GEN.  xlix.9.  3  PSALM  ex.  3.  4  EccLES.xii.2— 6. 


.  X.  ALLEGORY. 


ingenuity  of  the  learned,  many  of  whom  have  differently,  it  is  true, 
but  with  mueh  learning  and  sagacity,  explained  the  passage. (B) 

There  is  also  in  Isaiah  an  allegory,  which,  with  no  less  elegance 
of  imagery,  is  more  simple  and  regular,  more  just  and  complete  in 
the  form  and  colouring  :  I  shall,  therefore,  quote  the  whole  passage.5 
The  prophet  is  explaining  the  design  and  manner  of  the  divine 
judgements  :  he  is  inculcating  the  principle,  that  God  adopts  differ- 
ent modes  of  acting  in  the  chastisement  of  the  wicked,  but  that  the 
most  perfect  wisdom  is  conspicuous  in  all ;  that  "  he  will,"  as  he  had 
urged  before,  "  exact  judgement  by  the  line,  and  righteousness  by 
the  plummet  ;"6  that  he  ponders  with  the  most  minute  attention  the 
distinctions  of  times,  characters,  and  circumstances ;  all  the  mo- 
tives to  lenity  or  severity.  All  this  is  expressed  in  a  continued  alle- 
gory, the  imagery  of  which  is  taken  from  agriculture  and  threshing  : 
the  use  and  suitableness  of  which  imagery,  as  in  a  manner  conse- 
crated to  this  subject,  I  have  formerly  explained,  so  that  there  is  no 
need  of  further  detail  at  present. 

"  Aures  advertite,  atque  audite  vocem  meam ; 

"  Attendite  et  auscultate  sermoni  meo : 

"  Num  omni  tempore  arat  arator  ad  serendum ; 

"  Proscindit  et  offringit  terrain  suam  ? 

"  Nonne  cum  complanavit  eius  superficiem, 

"  Turn  spargit  nigellam,  aut  disiicit  euminum, 

"  Et  mandat  far  certa  mensura, 

"  Et  hordeo  signatum  est  et  zeae  spatium  suum  ? 

"  Nam  perfecte  eum  instituit,  Deus  eius  ipsum  erudit. 

"  Neque  vero  tribulo  trituratur  nigella, 

"  Nee  rota  plostelli  super  euminum  circumagitur  : 

"  Sed  virga  excutitur  nigella, 

"  Et  euminum  baculo ;  far  autem  tritura  exteritur. 

"  Nee  tamen  hoc  perpetuo  perget  triturare ; 

"  Aut  agitabit  rota  plostelli  sui ; 

"  Neque  ungulis  suis  semper  exteret. 

"  Etiam  hoc  a  lehova  provenit : 

"  Mirabilem  se  praestat  consilio,  magnificum  effectu."(c) 

Another  kind  of  allegory  is  that,  which,  in  the  proper  and  re- 
stricted sense,  may  be  called  parable,  and  consists  of  a  continued 
narration  of  a  fictitious  event,  applied  by  way  of  simile  to  the  illus- 
tration of  some  important  truth.  The  Greeks  call  these  allego- 
ries cuvoi,  or  ctTiokoyot,  the  Latins  fabula :  and  the  writings  of 
the  Phrygian  sage,  or  those  composed  in  imitation  of  him,  have  ac- 

5  ISAI.  xxviii.  23—29.  6  ISAI.  xxviii.  17. 


84  ALLEGORY.  L.ECT.  X. 

quired  the  greatest  celebrity.  Nor  has  our  Saviour  himself  disdain- 
ed to  adopt  the  same  method  of  instruction,  of  whose  parables  it  is 
doubtful,  whether  they  excel  most  in  wisdom  and  utility,  or  in  sweet- 
ness, elegance  and  perspicuity.  I  must  observe,  that  the  appella- 
tion of  parable  having  been  applied  to  his  discourses  of  this  kind, 
the  term  is  now  restricted  from  its  former  extensive  signification  to 
a  more  confined  sense.  This  species  of  composition  occurs  very 
frequently  in  the  prophetic  poetry,  and  particularly  in  that  of  Eze- 
kiel.  But  to  enable  us  to  judge  with  more  certainty  upon  the  sub- 
ject, it  will  be  necessary  to  explain  in  a  few  words  some  of  the  pri- 
mary qualities  of  the  poetic  parables,  that,  by  considering  the  gen- 
eral nature  of  them,  we  may  decide  more  accurately  on  the  merits 
of  particular  examples. 

It  is  the  first  excellence  of  a  parable  to  turn  upon  an  image  well 
known  and  applicable  to  the  subject,  the  meaning  of  which  is  clear 
and  definite  ;  for  this  circumstance  will  give  it  perspicuity,  which  is 
essential  to  every  species  of  allegory.  If,  therefore,  by  this  rule  we 
examine  the  parables  of  the  sacred  prophets,  we  shall,  I  am  persua- 
ded, find  them  not  in  the  least  deficient.  They  are  in  general  foun- 
ded upon  such  imagery  as  is  frequently  used,  and  similarly  applied 
by  way  of  metaphor  and  comparison  in  the  Hebrew  poetry.  Most 
accurate  examples  of  this  are  to  be  found  in  the  parable  of  the  de- 
ceitful vineyard,7  of  the  useless  vine,8  which  is  given  to  the  fire  ;  for 
under  this  imagery  the  ungrateful  people  of  God  are  more  than 
once  described.  I  may  instance  also  that  of  the  lion's  whelps  falling 
into  the  pit,9  in  which  is  appositely  displayed  the  captivity  of  the 
Jewish  princes  ;  or  that  of  the  fair,  lofty,  and  flourishing  cedar  of 
Lebanon,10  which  raised  its  head  to  the  clouds,  cut  down  at  length 
and  neglected ;  exhibiting,  as  in  a  picture,  the  prosperity  and  the 
fall  of  the  king  of  Assyria.  I  will  add  one  more  example  (there  is, 
indeed,  scarcely  any  which  might  not  with  propriety  be  introduced 
here,)  I  mean  that,  in  which  the  love  of  God  towards  his  people, 
and  their  piety  and  fidelity  to  him,  are  expressed  by  an  allusion  to 
the  solemn  covenant  of  marriage.  Ezekiel  has  pursued  this  image 
with  uncommon  freedom  in  two  parables  ;11  in  truth  almost  all  the 
sacred  poets  have  touched  upon  it.  There  was,  therefore,  no  part 
of  the  imagery  of  the  Hebrew  poetry  more  established  than  this  ;  nor 
ought  it  to  appear  extraordinary,  that  Solomon,  in  that  most  elegant 

1  ISAI.  v.  1—7.  8  EZEK.  xv.  and  xix.  10—14. 

9  EZEK.  xix.  1 — 9.  1°  EZEK.  xxxi.  U  EZEK.  xvi.  and  xxiii. 


LECT.  X.  ALLEGORY.  85 

poem,  the  Canticles,  should  distinguish  and  depict  the  most  sacred 
of  all  subjects  with  similar  outlines  and  in  similar  colours.(D) 

It  is  not,  however,  sufficient,  that  the  image  be  apt  and  familiar  j 
it  must  also  be  elegant  and  beautiful  in  itself :  since  it  is  for  the 
purpose  of  a  poetic  parable,  not  only  to  explain  more  perfectly  some 
proposition,  but  frequently  to  give  it  more  animation  and  splendour. 
The  imagery  from  natural  objects  is  superior  to  all  other  in  this 
respect ;  for  almost  every  picture  from  nature,  if  accurately  drawn, 
has  its  peculiar  beauty.  As  the  parables  of  the  sacred  poets,  there- 
fore, consist  chiefly  of  this  kind  of  imagery,  the  elegance  of  the  ma- 
terials generally  serves  to  recommend  them.  If  there  be  any  of  a 
different  kind,  such  as  may  be  accounted  less  delicate  and  refined, 
it  ought  to  be  considered,  whether  they  are  not  to  be  accounted 
among  those,  the  dignity  and  grace  of  which  are  lost  to  us,  though 
they  were  perhaps  wanting  in  neither  to  people  of  the  same  age  and 
country.  If  any  reader,  for  instance,  should  be  offended  with  the 
boiling  pot  of  Ezekiel,12  and  the  scum  flowing  over  into  the  fire ; 
let  him  remember,  that  the  prophet,  who  was  also  a  priest,  took  the 
allusion  from  his  own  sacred  rites  :  nor  is  there  a  possibility,  that  an 
image  could  be  accounted  mean  or  disgusting,  which  was  connected 
with  the  holy  ministration  of  the  temple. 

It  is  also  essential  to  the  elegance  of  a  parable,  that  the  imagery 
should  not  only  be  apt  and  beautiful,  but  that  all  its  parts  and  appen- 
dages should  be  perspicuous  and  pertinent.  It  is,  however,  by  no 
means  necessary,  that  in  every  parable  the  allusion  should  be  com- 
plete in  every  part ;  such  a  degree  of  resemblance  would  frequently 
appear  too  minute  and  exact :  but  when  the  nature  of  the  subject 
will  bear,  much  more  when  it  will  even  require  a  fuller  explanation  ; 
and  when  the  similitude  runs  directly,  naturally,  and  regularly, 
through  every  circumstance,  then  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  it  is  pro- 
ductive of  the  greatest  beauty.  Of  all  these  excellencies,  there  can- 
not be  more  perfect  examples  than  the  parables  which  have  been 
just  specified.  I  will  also  venture  to  recommend  the  well  know  par- 
able of  Nathan,13  although  written  in  prose,  as  well  as  that  of  Jo- 
tham,14  which  appears  to  be  the  most  ancient  extant,  and  approach- 
es somewhat  nearer  the  poetical  form.(E) 

To  these  remarks  I  will  add  another,  which  may  be  consid- 
ered as  the  criterion  of  a  parable,  namely,  that  it  be  consistent 
throughout,  and  that  the  literal  be  never  confounded  with  the  figu- 

12  EZEK.  xxiv.  3,  &c.  13  2  SAM.  xii.  1—4.  H  JUD.  ix.  7—15. 


86  ALLEGORY.  L.ECT.  X. 

rative  sense.  In  this  respect  it  materially  differs  from  the  former 
species  of  allegory,  which,  deviating  but  gradually  from  the  simple 
metaphor,  does  not  always  immediately  exclude  literal  expressions, 
or  words  without  a  figure.  But  both  the  fact  itself,  and  this  distinc- 
tion, will  more  evidently  appear  from  an  example  of  each  kind. 

The  psalmist,  (whoever  he  was)  describing  the  people  of  Israel 
as  a  vine,15  has  continued  the  metaphor,  and  happily  drawn  it  out 
through  a  variety  of  additional  circumstances.  Among  the  many 
beauties  of  this  allegory,  not  the  least  graceful  is  that  modesty,  with 
which  he  enters  upon  and  concludes  his  subject,  making  an  easy 
and  gradual  transition  from  plain  to  figurative  language,  and  no  less 
delicately  receding  back  to  the  plain  and  unornamented  narrative. 

"  Ex  Aegypto  cduxisti  vitem  ; 

"  Eiecisti  gentes  eamque  plant&sti : 

"  Ante  faciem  eius  praepardsti  locum  " 

After  this  follow  some  figurative  expressions,  less  cautiously  intro- 
duced :  in  which  when  he  has  indulged  for  some  time,  how  elegant- 
ly does  he  revert  to  his  proper  subject ! 

Revertere,  o  Deus  exercituum  ; 
De  coelo  despice  et  intuere, 
Et  vitis  huius  curam  suscipe  : 
Et  germinis  quod  tua  plantavit  dexter  a, 
Et  sobolis  quam  tibi  confirmdsti. 
Igni  comburitur  penitusque  succiditur  ; 
Per  vultus  tui  increpationem  pereunt. 
1  Sit  manus  tua  super  virum  dexterae  tuae, 
Super  sobolem  illam  hominis  quam  tibi  confirmasti."(F) 

You  may  easily  perceive,  gentlemen,  how,  in  this  first  kind  of 
allegory,  the  literal  may  be  mingled  with  the  figurative  sense  ;  and 
even  how  graceful  this  practice  appears,  since  light  is  more  agreeably 
thrown  upon  the  subject  in  an  oblique  manner,  without  too  bare  and 
direct  an  explication.  But  it  is  different,  when  the  same  image  puts 
on  the  form  of  the  other  sort  of  allegory,  or  parable,  as  in  Isaiah.16 
Here  is  no  room  for  literal,  or  even  ambiguous  expressions ;  every 
word  is  figurative ;  the  whole  mass  of  colouring  is  taken  from  the 
same  pallet.  Thus  what,  in  the  former  quotation,  is  expressed  in 
undisguised  language,  namely,  "the  casting  out  of  the  nations,  the 
preparation  of  the  place,  and  its  destruction  from  the  rubuke  of  the 

15  PSAL.  Ixxx.  9—18.  16  Chap.  v.  1—7 


LECT.  X.  ALLEGORY.  87 

Lord,"  is  by  Isaiah  expressed  wholly  in  a  figurative  manner : — 
"  The  Lord  gathered  out  the  stones  from  his  vineyard,  and  cleared  it : 
but  when  it  deceived  him,  he  threw  down  its  hedge,  and  made  it 
waste,  and  commanded  the  clouds  that  they  should  rain  no  rain  upon 
it."  Expressions,  which  in  the  one  case  possess  a  peculiar  grace, 
would  be  absurd  and  incongruous  in  the  other.  For  the  continued 
metaphor  and  the  parable  have  a  very  different  aim.  The  sole  in- 
tention of  the  former  is  to  embellish  a  subject,  to  represent  it  more 
magnificently,  or  at  the  most  to  illustrate  it ;  that,  by  describing  it 
in  more  elevated  language,  it  may  strike  the  mind  more  forcibly  : 
but  the  intent  of  the  latter  is  to  withdraw  the  truth  for  a  moment 
from  our  sight,  in  order  to  conceal  whatever  it  may  contain  ungraceful 
or  disgusting,  and  to  enable  it  secretly  to  insinuate  itself,  and  obtain 
an  ascendency  as  it  were  by  stealth.  There  is,  however,  a  species 
of  parable,  the  intent  of  which  is  only  to  illustrate  the  subject,  such 
is  that  remarkable  one  of  Ezekiel,17  which  I  just  now  commended, 
of  the  cedar  of  Lebanon  :  than  which,  if  we  consider  the  imagery 
itself,  none  was  ever  more  apt  or  more  beautiful ;  if  the  description 
and  colouring,  none  was  ever  more  elegant  or  splendid  ;  in  which, 
however,  the  poet  has  occasionally  allowed  himself  to  blend  the  fig- 
urative with  the  literal  description  :18  whether  he  has  done  this  be- 
cause the  peculiar  nature  of  this  kind  of  parable  required  it,  or 
whether  his  own  fervid  imagination  alone,  which  disdained  the  strict- 
er rules  of  composition,  was  his  guide,  I  can  scarcely  presume  to  de- 
termine. 

17  Chap.  xxxi.  13  See  v.  11, 14—17. 


LECTURE  XI. 


OF    THE    MYSTICAL    ALLEGORY. 

The  definition  of  the  Mystical  Allegory — Founded  upon  the  allegorical  or  typical  nature  of  the 
Jewish  religion — The  distinction  between  this  and  the  two  former  species  of  allegory  ;  in  the 
nature  of  the  materials  ;  it  being  allowable  in  the  former  to  make  use  of  imagery  from  in- 
different objects  ;  in  this,  only  such  as  is  derived  from  things  sacred,  or  their  opposites ;  in 
the  former,  the  exterior  image  has  no  foundation  in  truth;  in  the  latter,  both  images  are 
equally  true — The  difference  in  the  form  or  manner  of  treating  them — The  most  beautiful 
form  is  when  the  corresponding  images  run  parallel  through  the  whole  poem,  and  mutually 
illustrate  each  other — Examples  of  this  in  the  second  and  seventy-second  Psalms — The  par- 
abolic style  admirably  adapted  to  this  species  of  allegory  ;  the  nature  of  which  renders  it 
the  language  most  proper  for  prophecy — Extremely  dark  in  itself,  but  it  is  gradually  cleared 
up  by  the  series  of  events  foretold,  and  more  complete  revelation  ;  time  also,  which  in  the 
general  obscures,  contributes  to  its  full  explanation. 

THE  third  species  of  allegory,  which  also  prevails  much  in  the 
prophetic  poetry,  is  when  a  double  meaning  is  couched  under  the 
same  words  ;  or  when  the  same  production,  according  as  it  is  dif- 
ferently interpreted,  relates  to  different  events,  distant  in  time,  and 
distinct  in  their  nature.  These  different  relations  are  termed  the 
literal  and  the  mystical  senses ;  and  these  constitute  one  of  the  most 
difficult  and  important  topics  of  Theology.  The  subject  is,  howev- 
er, connected  also  with  the  sacred  poetry,  and  is  therefore  deserving 
of  a  place  in  these  lectures. 

In  the  sacred  rites  of  the  Hebrews,  things,  places,  times,  offices, 
and  such  like,  sustain  as  it  were  a  double  character,  the  one  proper 
or  literal,  the  other  allegorical ;  and  in  their  writings  these  subjects 
are  sometimes  treated  of  in  such  a  manner,  as  to  relate  either  to  the 
one  sense  or  the  other,  singly,  or  to  both  united.  For  instance,  a 
composition  may  treat  of  David,  of  Solomon,  of  Jerusalem,  so  as  to 
be  understood  to  relate  simply  either  to  the  city  itself  and  its  mon- 
archs,  or  else  to  those  objects,  which,  in  the  sacred  allegory  of  the 
Jewish  religion,  are  denoted  by  that  city  and  by  those  monarchs :  or 
the  mind  of  the  author  may  embrace  both  objects  at  once,  so  that 
the  very  words  which  express  the  one  in  the  plain,  proper,  historical, 
and  commonly  received  sense,  may  typify  the  other  in  the  sacred, 
interior,  and  prophetic  sense. 


LECT.  XL        THE  MYSTICAL  ALLEGORY.  89 

From  these  principles  of  the  Jewish  religion,  this  kind  of  allego- 
ry, which  I  am  inclined  to  call  mystical,  seems  more  especially  to 
derive  its  origin,  and  from  these  we  must  endeavour  at  an  explanation 
of  it.  But  its  nature  and  peculiar  properties  will  probably  be  more 
easily  demonstrable,  if  we  previously  define  in  what  respects  it  is 
different  from  the  two  former  species  of  allegory. 

The  first  remarkable  difference  is,  that  in  allegories  of  the  kind  -\ 
already  noticed,  the  writer  is  at  liberty  to  make  use  of  whatever  im-  / 
agery  is  most  agreeable  to  his  fancy  or  inclination  :  there  is  nothing 
in  universal   nature,  nothing  which  the  mind  perceives,  either  by 
sense  or  reflection,  which  may  not  be  adapted  in  the  form  of  a  con- 
tinued metaphor,  or  even  of  a  parable,   to  the  illustration  of  some 
other  subject.     This  latter  kind  of  allegory,  on  the  contrary,  can 
only  be  supplied  with  proper  materials  from  the  sacred  rites  of  the 
Hebrews  themselves  ;  nor  can  it  be  introduced,  except  in  relation  to 
such  things  as  are  directly  connected  with  the  Jewish  religion,  or 
their  immediate  opposites.     For  to  Israel,  Sion,  Jerusalem,   in  the 
allegorical  as  well  as  the  literal  sense,  are  opposed  Assyria,  Babylon, 
Egypt,  Idumea  ;    and  the  same  opposition  exists  in  other  subjects  of 
a  similar  nature.     The  two  former  kinds  of  allegory  are  of  the  same 
general  nature  with  the  other  figures,  and  partake  of  the  common 
privileges  of  poetry  ;  this  latter,  or  mystical  allegory,  has  its  founda- 
tion  in  the  nature  of  the  Jewish  economy,  and  is  adapted  solely  to  / 
the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews.     Hence  that  truly  Divine  Spirit,  which 
has  not  disdained  to  employ  poetry  as  the  interpreter  of  its  sacred 
will,  has  also  in  a  manner  appropriated  to  its  own  use  this  kind  of  j 
allegory,  as  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  publication  of  future  events,    : 
and  to  the  typifying  of  the  most  sacred  mysteries  :  so  that  should  it, 
on  any  occasion,  be  applied  to  a  profane  and  common  subject ;  be- 
ing diverted  from  its  proper  end,  and  forced  as  it  were  from  its  natu- 
ral bias,  it  would  inevitably  want  all  its  power  and  elegance. (A) 

There  is  likewise  this  further  distinction,  that  in  those  other 
forms  of  allegory,  the  exterior  or  ostensible  imagery  is  fiction  only  ; 
the  truth  lies  altogether  in  the  interior  or  remote  sense,  which  is 
veiled  as  it  were  under  this  thin  and  pellucid  covering.  But  in  the 
allegory,  of  which  we  are  now  treating,  each  idea  is  equally  agreea- 
ble to  truth.  The  exterior  or  ostensible  image  is  not  a  shadowy  col- 
ouring of  the  interior  sense,  but  is  in  itself  a  reality  ;  and  although 
it  sustain  another  character,  it  does  not  wholly  lay  aside  its  own. 
For  instance,  in  the  metaphor  or  parable,  the  lion,  the  eagle,  the  ce- 

12 


90  THE  MYSTICAL  ALLEGORY.  L.ECT.  XI. 

dar,  considered  with  respect  to  their  identical  existence,  are  alto- 
gether destitute  of  reality  ;  but  what  we  read  of  David,  Solomon,  or 
Jerusalem,  in  this  sublimer  kind  of  allegory,  may  be  either  accepted 
in  a  literal  sense,  or  may  be  mystically  interpreted  according  to  the 
religion  of  the  Hebrews,  and  in  each  view,  whether  considered  con- 
junctly  or  apart,  will  be  found  equally  agreeable  to  truth. 

Thus  far  this  kind  of  allegory  differs  from  the  former  in  the  ma- 
terials, or  in  the  nature  of  the  imagery  which  it  employs  ;  but  there 
is  some  difference  also  in  the  form  or  manner  of  introducing  this 
imagery.  I  had  occasion  before  to  remark  the  liberty,  which  is  al- 
lowed in  the  continued  metaphor,  of  mingling  the  literal  with  the 
figurative  meaning,  that  is,  the  obvious  with  the  remote  idea  ;  which 
is  a  liberty  altogether  inconsistent  with  the  nature  of  a  parable.  But 
to  establish  any  certain  rules  with  regard  to  this  point  in  the  con- 
duct of  the  mystical  allegory,  would  be  a  difficult  and  hazardous  un- 
dertaking. For  the  Holy  Spirit  has  evidently  chosen  different 
modes  of  revealing  his  sacred  counsels,  according  to  the  circum- 
stances of  persons  and  times,  inciting  and  directing  at  pleasure  the 
minds  of  his  prophets  :  at  one  time  displaying  with  an  unbounded 
liberality  the  clear  indications  of  future  events  ;  at  another  impart- 
ing some  obscure  intimations  with  a  sparing  hand.  Thus  there  is  a 
vast  variety  in  the  use  and  conduct  of  the  mystical  allegory  ;  in  the 
modes  in  which  the  corresponding  images  are  arranged,  and  in 
which  they  are  obscured  or  eclipsed  by  one  another.  Sometimes 
'  the  obvious  or  literal  sense  is  so  prominent  and  conspicuous,  both  in 
the  words  and  sentiments,  that  the  remote  or  figurative  sense  is 
scarcely  permitted  to  glimmer  through  it.(B)  On  the  other  hand, 
and  that  more  frequently,  the  figurative  sense  is  found  to  beam  forth 
with  so  much  perspicuity  and  lustre,  that  the  literal  sense  is  quite 
cast  into  a  shade,  or  becomes  indiscernible.  Sometimes  the  prin- 
cipal or  figurative  idea  is  exhibited  to  the  attentive  eye  with  a  con- 
stant and  equal  light ;  and  sometimes  it  unexpectedly  glares  upon 
us,  and  breaks  forth  with  sudden  and  astonishing  coruscations,  like 
a  flash  of  lightning  bursting  from  the  clouds.  But  the  mode  or  form 
of  this  figure,  which  possesses  the  most  beauty  and  elegance  (and 
that  elegance  is  the  principal  object  of  this  disquisition)  is,  when 
the  two  images  equally  conspicuous  run,  as  it  were,  parallel  through 
the  whole  poem,  mutually  illustrating  and  correspondent  to  each 
other.  Though  the  subject  be  obscure,  I  do  not  fear  being  able  to 
produce  one  or  two  undoubted  instances  of  this  peculiar  excellence. 


LECT.  XL  THE  MYSTICAL  ALLEGORY.  91 

which,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  will  sufficiently  explain  what  I  have  ad- 
vanced concerning  the  nature  of  the  mystical  allegory. 

The  subject  of  the  second  Psalm  is  the  establishment  of  David 
upon  the  throne,  agreeably  to  the  almighty  decree,  notwithstanding 
the  fruitless  opposition  of  his  enemies.  The  character  which  David 
sustains  in  this  poem  is  twofold,  literal  and  allegorical.  If  on  the 
first  reading  of  the  Psalm  we  consider  the  character  of  David  in  the 
literal  sense,  the  composition  appears  sufficiently  perspicuous,  and 
abundantly  illustrated  by  facts  from  the  sacred  history.  Through 
the  whole,  indeed,  there  is  an  unusual  fervour  of  language,  a  bril- 
liancy of  metaphor ;  and  sometimes  the  diction  is  uncommonly  ele- 
vated, as  if  to  intimate,  that  something  of  a  more  sublime  and  impor- 
tant nature  lay  concealed  within  ;  and  as  if  the  poet  had  some  inten- 
tion of  admitting  us  to  the  secret  recesses  of  his  subject.  If,  in  con- 
sequence of  this  indication,  we  turn  our  minds  to  contemplate  the 
internal  sense,  and  apply  the  same  passages  to  the  allegorical  David, 
a  nobler  series  of  events  is  presented  to  us,  and  a  meaning  not  only 
more  sublime,  but  even  more  perspicuous,  rises  to  the  view.  Should 
any  thing  at  first  appear  bolder  and  more  elevated  than  the  obvious 
sense  would  bear,  it  will  now  at  once  appear  clear,  expressive,  and 
admirably  adapted  to  the  dignity  of  the  principal  subject.  If,  after 
having  considered  attentively  the  subjects  apart,  we  examine  them 
at  length  in  a  united  view,  the  beauty  and  sublimity  of  this  most  el- 
egant poem  will  be  improved. (c)  We  may  then  perceive  the  vast 
disparity  of  the  two  images,  and  yet  the  continual  harmony  and 
agreement  that  subsists  between  them,  the  amazing  resemblance,  as 
between  near  relations,  in  every  feature  and  lineament,  and  the  ac- 
curate analogy  which  is  preserved,  so  that  either  may  pass  for  the 
original,  whence  the  other  was  copied.  New  light  is  reflected  upon 
the  diction,  and  a  degree  of  dignity  and  importance  is  added  to  the 
sentiments,  whilst  they  gradually  rise  from  humble  to  more  elevated 
objects,  from  human  to  divine,  till  at  length  the  great  subject  of  the 
poem  is  placed  in  the  most  conspicuous  light,  and  the  composition 
attains  the  highest  point  of  sublimity. 

What  has  been  remarked  concerning  this  Psalm,  may  be  applied 
with  propriety  to  the  seventy-second,  which  exactly  resembles  it  both 
in  matter  and  form.  It  might  not  improperly  be  entitled  the  inau- 
guration of  Solomon.  The  nature  of  the  allegory  is  the  same  with 
the  former ;  the  style  is  something  different,  on  account  of  the  dis- 
parity of  the  subject.  In  the  one  the  pomp  and  splendour  of  victory 


92  THE  MYSTICAL  ALLEGORY.  L.ECT.  XL 

is  displayed  ;  in  the  other  the  placid  image  of  peace  and  felicity. 
The  style  of  the  latter  is,  therefore,  more  calm  and  temperate,  more 
ornamented,  more  figurative ;  not  abounding  in  the  same  boldness 
of  personification  as  the  former,  but  rather  touched  with  the  gay  and 
cheerful  colouring  of  nature,  in  its  most  flourishing  and  delightful 
state.  From  this  example  some  light  will  be  thrown  upon  the  na- 
ture of  the  parabolic  style ;  in  particular  it  will  appear  admirably 
adapted  to  this  kind  of  allegory,  on  account  of  its  abounding  so 
much  in  this  species  of  imagery.  For  as  the  imagery  of  nature  is 
C  equally  calculated  to  express  the  ideas  of  divine  and  spiritual,  or  of 
human  things,  a  certain  analogy  being  preserved  in  each ;  so  it  eas- 
ily admits  that  degree  of  ambiguity,  which  appears  essential  to  this 
"figure.  By  these  means  the  composition  is  at  the  same  time  diversi- 
fied and  perspicuous,  applicable  to  both  senses,  and  obscure  in  nei- 
ther ;  and  completely  comprehending  both  parts  of  the  allegory,  may 
clearly  and  distinctly  be  referred  to  either. 

Still,  however,  a  degree  of  obscurity  must  occasionally  attend 
this  style  of  composition ;  and  this  obscurity  not  only  results  from 
the  nature  of  the  figure,  but  is  even  not  without  its  peculiar  utility. 
For  the  mystical  allegory  is  on  this  very  account  so  agreeable  to  the 
nature  of  prophecy,  that  it  is  the  form  which  the  latter  generally, 
and  I  might  add  lawfully,  assumes,  as  most  fitted  for  the  prediction 
of  future  events.  It  describes  events  in  a  manner  exactly  conform- 
able to  the  intention  of  prophecy  ;  that  is,  in  a  dark,  disguised,  and 
intricate  manner ;  sketching  out  in  a  general  way  their  form  and 
outline ;  and  seldom  descending  to  minuteness  of  description,  and 
exactness  of  detail.  If  on  some  occasions  it  expressly  signifies  any 
notable  circumstance,  it  seems  to  be  for  two  principal  reasons  :l 
First,  that,  as  generally  happens,  by  suddenly,  withdrawing  from  our 
view  the  literal  meaning,  the  attention  may  be  excited  to  the  inves- 
tigation of  the  figurative  sense ;  and  secondly,  that  certain  express 
marks,  or  distinguishing  features,  may  occasionally  shew  themselves, 
which,  after  the  accomplishment  of  the  prediction,  may  be  sufficient, 
to  remove  every  doubt,  and  to  assert  and  confirm,  in  all  points,  the 
truth,  and  divinity  of  the  prophecy. 

The  prophetic,  indeed,  differs  in  one  respect  from  every  other 
species  of  the  sacred  poetry  :  when  first  divulged  it  is  impenetrably 
obscure  ;  and  time,  which  darkens  every  other  composition,  eluci- 

1  PSAL.  xxii.  17,  18, 19.  and  Ixix.  22. 


.  XI.  THE  MYSTICAL  ALLEGORY.  93 


dates  this.  That  obscurity,  therefore,  in  which  at  first  this  part  of 
the  sacred  writings  was  involved,  is  now  in  a  great  measure  remo- 
ved ;  there  are  now  many  things  which  the  course  of  events  (the 
most  certain  interpreter  of  prophecy)  has  completely  laid  open  ;  from 
many  the  Holy  Spirit  has  itself  condescended  to  remove  the  veil, 
with  which  they  were  at  first  concealed  ;  many  sacred  institutions 
there  are,  the  reason  and  intent  of  which  are  more  clearly  under- 
stood, since  the  design  of  the  Jewish  dispensation  has  been  more 
perfectly  revealed.  Thus  it  happens,  that,  instructed  and  supported 
by  these  aids,  of  which  the  ancient  Hebrews  were  destitute,  and 
which  in  truth  appear  not  to  have  been  conceded  to  the  prophets 
themselves,  we  come  better  accomplished  for  the  knowledge  and 
comprehension  of  that  part  of  the  sacred  poetry,  which  is  the  most 
singular  in  its  nature,  and  by  far  the  most  difficult  of  explanation. (D) 


LECTURE  XII. 


OF  THE  COMPARISON. 

Comparisons  are  introduced  for  three  purposes  ;  illustration,  amplification,  and  variety — For  the 
first  an  image  is  requisite,  apt,  well  known,  and  perspicuous ;  it  is  of  little  consequence 
whether  it  be  sublime  or  beautiful,  or  neither  :  hence  comparisons  from  objects  which  are  in 
themselves  mean  and  humble,  may  be  sometimes  useful — For  the  purpose  of  amplification  an 
image  is  requisite  which  is  sublime,  or  beautiful,  even  though  it  should  be  less  apt  and  per- 
spicuous :  and  on  this  plea  a  degree  of  obscurity,  or  a  remoteness  in  the  resemblance,  may 
sometimes  be  excused — When  variety  is  the  object,  splendid,  beautiful,  and  elegant  imagery 
must  be  sought  for  ;  and  which  has  an  apt  agreement  with  the  object  of  the  comparison  in 
the  circumstances  or  adjuncts,  though  the  objects  themselves  may  be  different  in  kind — The 
most  perfect  comparison  is  that,  in  which  all  these  excellencies  are  united — The  peculiar 
form  of  comparisons  in  the  Hebrew  poetry  ;  it  results  from  the  nature  of  the  sententious 
style— They  are  short,  frequent,  simple,  depending  often  on  a  single  attribute— Different  im- 
ages displayed  in  the  parallel  sentences  ;  many  comparisons  are  arranged  in  this  manner  to 
illustrate  the  same  subject ;  or  different  attributes  of  the  same  comparison  are  often  distrib- 
uted in  the  different  divisions  or  parallelisms. 

IN  the  following  Lecture  I  shall  endeavour  to  treat  of  the  com- 
parison, which  I  have  classed  the  third  in  order  of  the  poetical  fig- 
ures, with  a  view  of  illustrating  in  some  degree  both  its  general  pro- 
perties, and  its  peculiar  application  and  force  in  the  poetic  composi- 
tions of  the  Hebrews. 

Comparisons  serve  three  distinct  purposes,  namely,  illustration, 
amplification,  and  pleasure  or  variety. 

In  the  first  place,  comparisons  are  introduced  to  illustrate  a  sub- 
ject, and  to  place  it  in  a  clearer  and  more  conspicuous  point  of  view. 
This  is  most  successfully  effected,  when  the  object  which  furnishes 
the  simile  is  familiar  and  perspicuous,  and  when  it  exactly  agrees 
with  that  to  which  it  is  compared.  In  this  species  of  comparison  el- 
evation or  beauty,  sublimity  or  splendour,  are  of  little  consequence ; 
strict  propriety,  and  a  direct  resemblance,  calculated  exactly  for  the 
explanation  of  the  subject,  is  a  sufficient  commendation.  Thus 
Homer  very  accurately  depicts  the  numbers  of  the  Grecian  army, 
their  ardour  and  eagerness  for  battle,  by  a  comparison  taken  from 
flies  collected  about  a  milk  pail ;  and  Virgil  compares  the  diligence 
of  the  Tyrians  in  building  their  city,  and  the  variety  of  their  oc- 
cupations, with  the  labours  of  the  bees ;  without  in  the  least  degrad- 
ing the  dignity  of  the  epic  muse.1 

i  IL.  II.  469.    Mn.  I.  432.    Compare  Milton's  Paradise  Lost,  I.  768. 


LECT.  XII.  OF  THE  COMPARISON.  95 

I  might  produce  many  examples  to  the  purpose  from  the  sacred 
poetry,  but  shall  content  myself  with  two  or  three,  than  which,  both 
as  to  matter  and  expression,  nothing  can  be  meaner  or  more  vulgar, 
nothing,  however,  can  be  conceived  more  forcible  or  expressive. 
Isaiah  introduces  the  king  of  Assyria  insolently  boasting  of  his  vic- 
tories : 

"  Nacta  est  manus  haec  tanquam  nidum  populorum  copias  : 

"  Et  ut  colliguntur  ova  derelicta, 

"  Ita  omnes  ego  teras  collegi ; 

"  Neque  erat  qui  alam  motitaret, 

"  Aut  qui  apertoore  pipiret."2 

And  Nahum  on  a  similar  subject : 

"  Omnes  munitiones  tuae  erunt  ut  ficus  praematuris  fructibus ; 
"  Si  concutientur,  cadent  illico  in  os  devorantis."3 

There  is  also  another  comparison  of  Isaiah  taken  from  domestic  life, 
very  obvious  and  very  common ;  but  which  for  the  gracefulness  of 
the  imagery,  the  elegance  of  the  arrangement,  and  the  forcible  ex- 
pression of  the  tenderest  affections,  has  never  been  exceeded  : 

"  Atqui  Sion  dicit ;  lehova  me  dereliquit, 
"  Et  Dominus  meus  oblitus  est  mei. 
"  Num  obliviscetur  mulier  sui  infantis; 
"  Ita  ut  non  misereatur  filii  uteri  sui  ? 
"  Etiam  illae  equidem  oblivisci  poterint ; 
"  Ego  vero  tui  non  obliviscar."^ 

There  is  another  species  of  comparison,  the  principal  intent  of 
which  is  the  amplification  of  the  subject ;  and  this  is  evidently  of  a 
different  nature  from  the  former  :  for,  in  the  first  place,  it  is  neces- 
sary that  the  image  which  is  introduced  for  the  purpose  of  amplify- 
ing or  ennobling  a  subject,  be  sublime,  beautiful,  magnificent,  or 
splendid,  and  therefore  not  trite  or  common  ;  nor  is  it  by  any  means 
necessary  that  the  resemblance  be  exact  in  every  circumstance. 
Thus  Virgil  has  the  address  to  impart  even  to  the  labours  of  his  bees 
a  wonderful  air  of  sublimity,  by  a  comparison  with  the  exertions  of 
the  Cyclops  in  fabricating  the  thunderbolts  of  Jupiter  :5  thus  he  ad- 
mirably depicts  the  grace,  the  dignity  and  strength  of  his  ^Eneas, 
by  comparing  him  with  Apollo  on  the  top  of  Cynthus  renewing  the 
sacred  chorus  ;  or  with  the  mountains  Athos,  Eryx,  and  Appenine.6 
Thus  also  Homer,  in  which  he  is  imitated  by  Virgil,  compares  two 

2  ISAI.  x.  14.  3  NAH.  iii.  12.  4  ISAI.  xlix.  14, 15. 

5  GEORG.  iv.  170.  6  JEN.  iv.  143.  xii.  701. 


96  OF   THE    COMPARISON.      .  LECT.  XII. 

heroes  rushing  to  battle,  with  Mars  and  his  offspring  Terror  advan- 
cing from  Thrace  to  the  Phlegyans  and  Ephyrians.7  But  if  it  should 
be  objected,  that  as  comparisons  of  the  former  kind  are  wanting  in 
dignity,  so  these  (in  which  familiar  objects  are  compared  with  ob- 
jects but  little  known,  or  with  objects  which  have  little  agreement 
or  resemblance  to  them)  are  more  likely  to  obscure  than  to  illustrate  ; 
let  it  be  remembered,  that  each  species  of  comparison  has  in  view  a 
different  end.  The  aim  of  the  poet  in  the  one  case  is  perspicuity, 
to  enable  the  mind  clearly  to  perceive  the  subject,  and  to  compre- 
hend the  whole  of  it  at  one  view  ;  in  the  other  the  object  is  sublim- 
ity, or  to  impress  the  reader  with  the  idea  that  the  magnitude  of  the 
subject  is  scarcely  to  be  conceived.  When  considered  in  this  light, 
it  will,  I  dare  presume,  be  allowed,  that  none  of  these  forms  of  com- 
parison, when  rightly  applied,  is  deficient,  either  in  propriety  or  el- 
egance. 

The  Hebrews  have  nothing  that  corresponds  with  those  fables, 
to  which  the  Greek  and  Roman  poets  have  recourse,  when  amplifi- 
cation is  required  :  nor  can  we  be  surprised  that  imagery  so  conse- 
crated, so  dignified  by  religion  and  antiquity,  and  yet  of  so  obvious 
and  established  acceptation  as  to  be  intelligible  to  the  meanest  un- 
derstanding, should  supply  abundant  and  suitable  materials  for  this 
purpose.  The  sacred  poets,  therefore,  resort  in  this  case  chiefly  to 
the  imagery  of  nature ;  and  this  they  make  use  of,  indeed,  with  so 
much  elegance  and  freedom,  that  we  have  no  cause  to  regret  the 
want  of  those  fictions,  to  which  other  nations  have  recourse.  To 
express  or  delineate  prosperity  and  opulence,  a  comparison  is  as- 
sumed from  the  cedar  or  the  palm  :8  if  the  form  of  majesty  or  exter- 
nal beauty  is  to  be  depicted,  Lebanon  or  Carmel  is  presented  to  our 
view.9  Sometimes  they  are  furnished  with  imagery  from  their  re- 
ligious rites,  at  once  beautiful,  dignified,  and  sacred.  In  both  these 
modes,  the  Psalmist  most  elegantly  extols  the  pleasures  and  advan- 
tages of  fraternal  concord : 

"  Ut  aura  suavis  balsami,  quum  funditur 
"  Aronis  in  sacrum  caput, 

"  Et  imbre  laeto  proluens  barbarn  et  sinus 
"  Limbum  pererrat  aureum  : 

"  Ut  ros,  tenella  gemmulis  argenteis 
"  Pingens  Sionis  gramina ; 

7  IL.  xiii.  298.    2EN.  xiii.  331. 

8  PSAL.  xcii.  12.      NUMB.  xxiv.  6.      Hos.  xiv.  6,  7,  8.      AMOS  ii.  9. 

9  See  Lect.  VI. 


LECT.  XII.  SIMILE,  OR  COMPARISON.  97 

"  Aut  verna  dulci  inebrians  uligine 
"  Hermonis  intonsi  iuga."10 

Let  us,  however,  attend  for  a  moment  to  Isaiah,  whom  no  writer 
has  surpassed  in  propriety,  when  his  aim  is  to  illustrate  ;  or  in  sub- 
limity, when  he  means  to  amplify  his  subject : 

"  O  tumultum  populorum  multorum  ! 

"  Instar  tumultus  marium  tumultuantur  : 

"  O  fremitum  nationum  ! 

"  Instar  fremitus  aquarum  immanium  confremunt. 

"  Populi  instar  fremitus  aquarum  multarum  confremunt : 

"  Sed  illo  increpante  procul  fugient ; 

"  Et  agentur,  ut  gluma  montium  vento  correpta, 

"  Utque  stipula  rotata  turbine. "H (A) 

The  third  species  of  comparison  seems  to  hold  a  middle  rank  be- 
tween the  two  preceding :  and  the  sole  intent  of  it  is,  by  a  mixture 
of  new  and  varied  imagery  with  the  principal  matter,  to  prevent  sa- 
tiety or  disgust,  and  to  promote  the  entertainment  of  the  reader.  It 
neither  descends  to  the  humility  of  the  one,  nor  emulates  the  sublim- 
ity of  the  other.  It  pursues  rather  the  agreeable,  the  ornamental, 
the  elegant,  and  ranges  through  all  the  variety,  all  the  exuberance 
of  nature.  In  so  extensive  a  field  it  would  be  an  infinite  task  to  col- 
lect all  that  might  be  observed  of  each  particular.  I  shall  remark 
one  circumstance  only,  which  though  it  sometimes  take  place  in  the 
two  former  species  of  comparison,  may  be  said  notwithstanding  to 
be  chiefly  appropriated  to  this  last. 

There  are  two  operations  of  the  mind,  evidently  contrary  to  each 
other.  The  one  consists  in  combining  ideas,  the  other  in  separating 
and  distinguishing  them.  For  in  contemplating  the  innumerable 
forms  of  things,  one  of  the  first  reflections  which  occurs  is,  that  there 
are  some  which  have  an  immediate  agreement,  and  some  which  are 
directly  contrary  to  each  other.  The  mind,  therefore,  contemplates 
those  objects  which  have  a  resemblance  in  their  universal  nature  in 
such  a  manner,  as  naturally  to  inquire  whether  in  any  respect  they  so 
disagree,  as  to  furnish  any  mark  of  discrimination ;  on  the  contrary, 
it  investigates  those  which  are  generally  different  in  such  a  manner,  as 
to  remark  whether,  in  their  circumstances  or  adjuncts,  they  may  not 
possess  something  in  common,  which  may  serve  as  a  bond  of  connex- 
ion or  association  to  class  or  unite  them.  The  final  cause  of  the 
former  of  these  operations  seems  to  be — to  caution  and  guard  us 

10  PSAL.  cxxxiii.  2,  3.  11  ISAI.  xvii.  12, 13. 

13 


98  SIMILE,  OR  COMPARISON.  LiECT.  XII. 

against  error,  in  confounding  one  with  another ;  of  the  latter,  to 
form  a  kind  of  repository  of  knowledge,  which  may  be  resorted  to, 
as  occasion  serves,  either  for  utility  or  pleasure.  These  constitute 
the  two  faculties,  which  are  distinguished  by  the  names  of  judgement 
and  imagination.12  As  accuracy  of  judgement  is  demonstrated  by 
discovering  in  things,  which  have  in  general  a  very  strong  resem- 
blance, some  partial  disagreement ;  so  the  genius  or  fancy  is  entitled 
to  the  highest  commendation,  when  in  those  objects,  which  upon 
the  whole  have  the  least  agreement,  some  striking  similarity  is  tra- 
ced out.13  In  those  comparisons,  therefore,  the  chief  purpose  of 
which  is  ornament  or  pleasure,  thus  far  may  pass  for  an  established 
principle,  that  they  are  most  likely  to  accomplish  this  end,  when  the 
image  is  not  only  elegant  and  agreeable,  but  is  also  taken  from  an 
object,  which  in  the  general  is  materially  different  from  the  subject 
of  comparison,  and  only  aptly  and  pertinently  agrees  with  it  in  one 
or  two  of  its  attributes. 

But  I  shall  probably  explain  myself  better  by  an  example.  There 
is  in  Virgil  a  comparison,  borrowed  from  Homer,  of  a  boiling  cal- 
dron.14 Supposing  in  each  poet  the  versification  and  description 
equally  elegant ;  still,  as  the  relation  between  the  things  compared 
is  different,  so  the  grace  and  beauty  of  the  comparison  is  different 
in  the  two  poets.  In  Homer  the  waters  of  the  river  Xanthus  boil- 
ing in  their  channel  by  the  fire,  which  Vulcan  has  thrown  into  the 
river,  are  compared  with  the  boiling  of  a  heated  caldron  ;  but  Vir- 
gil compares  with  the  same  object  the  mind  of  Turnus  agitated  by 
the  torch  of  the  fury  Alecto.  The  one  brings  together  ideas  mani- 
festly alike,  or  rather  indeed  the  same,  and  only  differing  in  cir- 
cumstances ;  the  other,  on  the  contrary,  assimilates  objects,  which 
are  evidently  very  different  in  their  nature,  but  aptly  agreeing  in 
some  of  their  adjuncts  or  circumstances.  Thus  the  comparison  of 
the  Latin  poet  is  new,  diversified,  and  agreeable  ;  but  that  of  the 


12  SeeHoBBEs  of  Human  Nature,  c.  x.  sect.  4.  and  LOCKE  of  Human  Un- 
derstanding, B.  xi.  c.  11.  sect.  2. 

13  "  Elegance  of  expression  consists   in  metaphors,   neither  too   remote, 
which  are  difficult  to  be  understood ;  nor  too  simple  and  superficial,  which  do 
not  affect  the  passions."     ARIST.  Rhet.  iii.  10.     "  For,  as  was  before  observed, 
metaphors  must  be  taken  from  objects  that   are  familiar,  yet  not  too  plain  and 
common  :     As  in  philosophy  it  is  a  mark  of  sagacity  to  discern  similitude  even 
in  very  dissimilar  things."     Ib.  c.  ii. 

14  JEn.  vii.  462.  II.  xxi.  362. 


LECT.  XII.  SIMILE,  OR  COMPARISON.  99 

Greek,  although  not  destitute  of  force  in  illustrating  the  subject,  is 
undoubtedly  wanting  in  all  the  graces  of  variety,  ornament,  and 
splendour. 

For  the  same  reason,  there  is  perhaps  no  comparison  of  any  poet 
extant  more  ingenious,  more  elegant  or  perfect  in  its  kind,  than  the 
following  of  the  same  excellent  poet  : 

"  Quae  Laomedontius  heros 
11  Cuncta  videns,  magno  curarum  fluctuat  aestu  ; 
"  Atque  animum  mine  hue  celerem,  nunc  dividit  illuc, 
"  In  partesque  rapit  varias.  perque  omnia  versat  : 
"  Sicut  aquae  tremulum  labris  ubi  lumen  a6nis 
"  Sole  repercussum,  aut  radiantis  imagine  lunae, 
"  Omnia  pervolitat  late  loca,  iamque  sub  auras 
"  Erigitur,  summique  ferit  laquearia  tecti."15 

He  appears  to  be  indebted  for  this  passage  to  Apollonius  Rhodius  : 


Hvxv'a  8t  oi  xoadifj  CTy&iiuv  evroo&cv  s&vcv, 

^Hel'iov  K>g  rig  Tt  dopoig  ivmaMtrai  cti'yAjj 

cJrSarog  i^avtovoa,  TO  <J»;  viov  itc  MfiriTi 

^Hi  Ttov  tv  yavlw  xtjfvrai'  »/  S^  tv&a  xai  tr&a 

>S^X£tri  aTQoywltyyi  TtvaOOtiai  a'i 

f£2g  Se  xai  iv  arij&eoai  xi 


In  this  description,  Virgil,  as  usual,  has  much  improved  upon  his 
original  ;  and  particularly  in  that  circumstance,  which  is  the  most 
essential  of  all,  that  on  which  the  fitness  of  the  comparison  depends, 
and  which  forms  the  hinge,  as  it  were,  upon  which  it  turns,  he  has 
greatly  surpassed  the  ancient  author. 

It  appears,  therefore,  that  in  comparisons,  the  chief  design  of 
which  is  ornament  or  variety,  the  principal  excellence  results  from 
the  introduction  of  an  image  different  in  kind,  but  correspondent  in 
some  particular  circumstances.  There  are,  however,  two  capital 
imperfections  to  which  this  figure  is  sometimes  liable  :  one,  when 
objects  too  dissimilar,  and  dissimilar  chiefly  in  the  adjuncts  or  cir- 
cumstances, are  forced  into  comparison  ;  the  other,  and  not  less 
common  or  important,  though  perhaps  less  adverted  to,  when  the 
relation  or  resemblance  is  in  general  too  exact  and  minute.  The 
comparison  in  the  one  case  is  monstrous  and  whimsical  ;  in  the  oth- 
er it  is  grovelling  and  inanimate. 

Examples  innumerable  in  illustration  of  the  present  subject  might 
be  found  in  the  sacred  poetry  ;  I  shall,  however,  produce  not  more 

15  Mn.  viii.  28.  16  Argon.  HI.  754. 


100  SIMILE,  OR  COMPARISON.  L.ECT.  XII. 

than  two  from  Isaiah.  The  first  from  the  historical  narration  of  the 
confederacy  between  the  Syrians  and  the  Israelites  against  the  king- 
dom of  Judah,  "  which  when  it  was  told  unto  the  king,"  says  the 
prophet,  "  his  heart  was  moved,  and  the  hearts  of  his  people,  as  the 
trees  of  the  wood  are  moved  with  the  wind."17  The  other  is  a  poet- 
ical comparison,  which  is  fuller  and  more  diffuse  than  the  custom  of 
the  Hebrews  generally  admits ;  the  subject  of  correspondent  appli- 
cation, however,  is  perfectly  exact.  The  divine  grace,  and  its  ef- 
fects, are  compared  with  showers  that  fertilize  the  earth  :  an  image 
which  is  uniformly  appropriated  to  that  purpose  : 

'  Nam  sicut  descendit  pluvia, 
'  Et  nix  de  coelo  ; 
'  Atque  illuc  non  revertitur, 
'  Donee  irrigaverit  tellurem, 
'  Earaque  foecundaverit,  et  fecerit  germinate ; 
'  Ut  det  semen  serenti  et  panem  comedenti : 
'  Tale  erit  verbum  quod  ex  meo  ore  prodit ; 
'  Non  ad  me  revertetur  irritum, 
'  Quin  effecerit  quodcunque  volui, 
"  Et  feliciter  transegerit  quod  ei  mandavi."*8  (B) 

More  examples,  and  of  superior  elegance,  may  be  found  in  the  Song 
of  Solomon  :19  it  must  not,  indeed,  be  dissembled,  that  there  are 
some  in  that  poem,  which  are  very  reprehensible,  on  account  of  that 
general  dissonance  and  fanciful  agreement,  which  I  have  just  re- 
marked as  a  great  imperfection  attending  the  free  use  of  this  fig- 
ure.20 We  must  be  cautious,  however,  lest  in  some  cases  we  charge 
the  poet  with  errors,  which  are  in  reality  our  own ;  since  many  of 
the  objects  which  suggested  these  comparisons,  are  greatly  obscured, 
and  some  of  them  removed  entirely  beyond  the  sphere  of  our  know- 
ledge by  distance  of  time  and  place.  It  is  the  part  of  a  wise  man 
not  rashly  to  condemn  what  we  are  able  but  partially  to  compre- 
hend. 

These  three  forms,  according  to  which,  for  the  sake  of  perspicu- 
ity, I  have  ventured  to  class  comparisons  in  general,  are  however 
not  so  incompatible,  that  they  may  not  occasionally  meet,  and  be  va- 
riously blended  with  each  other.  That  indeed  appears  to  be  the 
most  perfect  comparison  which  combines  all  these  different  objects, 

17  ISAI.  vii.  2.  i8IsAi.lv.  10, 11. 

19  See  CANT.  iv.  1—5,  farther  explained  Lect.  XXXI. 

20  See  CANT.  vii.  2—4. 


LECT.  XII.  SIMILE,  OR  COMPARISON.  101 

and  while  it  explains,  serves  at  the  same  time  to  amplify  and  embel- 
lish the  subject ;  and  which  possesses  evidence  and  elevation,  sea- 
soned with  elegance  and  variety.  A  more  complete  example  is 
scarcely  to  be  found  than  that  passage,  in  which  Job  impeaches  the 
infidelity  and  ingratitude  of  his  friends,  who  in  his  adversity  denied 
him  those  consolations  of  tenderness  and  sympathy,  which  in  his 
prosperous  state,  and  when  he  needed  them  not,  they  had  lavished 
upon  him  :  he  compares  them  with  streams,  which,  increased  by 
the  rains  of  winter,  overflow  their  borders,  and  display  for  a  little 
time  a  copious  and  majestic  torrent ;  but  with  the  first  impulse  of  the 
solar  beams  are  suddedly  dried  up,  and  leave  those,  who  unfortu- 
nately wander  through  the  deserts  of  Arabia,  destitute  of  water,  and 
perishing  with  thirst.21 

Thus  far  of  comparisons  in  general,  and  of  their  matter  and  in- 
tention :  it  remains  to  add  a  few  words  concerning  the  particular 
form  and  manner,  in  which  the  Hebrews  usually  exhibit  them. 

The  Hebrews  introduce  comparisons  more  frequently  perhaps 
than  the  poets  of  any  other  nation  ;  but  the  brevity  of  them  in  gene- 
ral compensates  for  their  abundance.  The  resemblance  usually 
turns  upon  a  single  circumstance  :  that  they  explain  in  the  most  sim- 
ple terms,  rarely  introducing  any  thing  at  all  foreign  to  the  purpose. 
The  following  example,  therefore,  is  almost  singular,  since  it  is  load- 
ed with  an  extraordinary  accession,  or  I  might  almost  say  a  superflu- 
ity of  adjuncts : 

"  Erunt  sicut  herba  tectorum, 

"  Quae  priusquam  effloresce!  exaruit : 

"  Qua  non  implet  manum  suam  messor, 

"  Neque  sinum  suum  qui  manipulos  colligit : 

"  Nee  dicunt  transeuntes, 

"  Benedictio  lehovae  vobis  adsit;29 

"  Benedicimus  vobis  in  nomine  lehovae."23 

The  usual  practice  of  the  Hebrews  is,  indeed,  very  different  from 
this  :  sometimes  a  single  word,  and  commonly  a  very  short  sentence, 
comprehends  the  whole  comparison.  This  peculiarity  proceeds  from 
the  nature  of  the  sententious  style,  which  is  always  predominant  in 
the  Hebrew  poetry,  and,  as  I  before  remarked,  consists  in  condens- 
ing and  compressing  every  exuberance  of  expression,  and  rendering 

21  JOB  vi.  15—20. 

22  A  customary  expression  made  use  of  in  this  business.     See  RUTH  ii.  4. 

23  PSALM  cxxix.  6—8.    See  also  PSALM  cxxxiii.  3. 


102  SIMILE,  OR  COMPARISON.  L.ECT.  XII. 

it  close  and  pointed.  Thus,  in  the  very  parts  in  which  other  poets 
are  copious  and  diffuse,  the  Hebrews,  on  the  contrary,  are  brief,  en- 
ergetic, and  animated  ;  not  gliding  along  in  a  smooth  and  equal 
stream,  but  with  the  inequality  and  impetuosity  of  a  torrent.  Thus 
their  comparisons  assume  a  peculiar  form  and  appearance  ;  for  it  is 
not  so  much  their  custom  to  dilate  and  embellish  each  particular  im- 
age with  a  variety  of  adjuncts,  as  to  heap  together  a  number  of  par- 
allel and  analogous  comparisons,  all  of  which  are  expressed  in  a  style 
of  the  utmost  brevity  and  simplicity.  Moses  compares  the  celestial 
influence  of  the  divine  song,  which  he  utters  by  the  command  of 
God,  with  showers  which  water  the  fields ;  and  on  an  occasion  when 
a  Greek  or  Latin  poet  would  have  been  contented  with  a  single  com- 
parison, perhaps  a  little  more  diffused  and  diversified,  he  has  intro- 
duced two  pairs  of  similes  exactly  expressive  of  the  same  thing  : 

"  Dcstillabit,  ut  pluvia,  doctrina  mea ; 
"  Fluet,  ut  ros,  mea  oratio  : 
"  Ut  imbres  tenuissimi  in  herbas ; 
"  Ut  densae  guttulae  in  gramina."24 

The  Psalmist  makes  use  of  the  same  form  in  the  following : 

"  Fac,  Deus  mi,  ut  sint  instar  glumae  rotatae, 

"  Instar  stipulae  correptae  vento  : 

"  Ut  saltum  comburit  ignis, 

"  Ut  montes  incendit  flamma ; 

"  Sic  tu  illos  tua  tempestate  persequere, 

"  Tuoque  turbine  consternates  age."25(c) 

This  is,  indeed,  the  most  common,  but  by  no  means  the  only 
form  which  this  figure  assumes  in  the  Hebrew  poetry  :  there  is  an- 
other, in  which  the  comparison  is  more  diffusively  displayed;  in 
which  case  the  equal  distribution  of  the  sentences  is  still  strictly  ad- 
hered to ;  the  image  itself,  however,  is  not  repeated,  but  its  attri- 
butes, which  explain  one  another  in  two  parallel  sentences  ;  as  Mo- 
ses has  done  in  a  comparison  immediately  following  that  which  I 
just  now  quoted,  in  which  he  compares  the  care  and  paternal  affec- 
tion of  the  Deity  for  his  people,  with  the  natural  tenderness  of  the 
eagle  for  its  young  : 

"  Ut  Aquila  excitat  identidem  nidum  suum ; 
"  Supper  pullos  suos  sese  motitat : 
"  Expandit  pennas,  assumit  eos  ; 
"  Gestat  eos  super  alam  suam."26 

24  DEUT.  xxxii.  2.        25  PSALM.  Ixxxiii.  13—15.        26  DEUT.  xxxii.  11. 


LECT.  XII.  SIMILE,  OR  COMPARISON.  103 

The  same  is  observable  also  in  that  most  elegant  comparison  of  Job, 
which  I  formerly  commended  ;  and  which  for  this  reason  I  shall 
now  quote  entire,  by  way  of  conclusion  : 

"  Fratres  mei  perfide  egerent  sicut  torrens, 

"  Ut  decursus  torrentium  illico  transierunt  ; 

"  Qui  turbidi  ruunt  a  glacie  ; 

"  In  quos  resoluta  absconditur  nix  : 

"  Quo  tempore  aestu  afficiuntur,  pereunt ; 

"  Cum  calescit,  exscinduntur  e  loco  suo  : 

"  Declinant  cajtervae  de  via  sua ; 

"  Ascendunt  in  deserta  et  intereunt : 

"  Respectant  eos  catervae  Themaeae  ; 

"  Turmae  Sabaeae  spem  in  eos  intendunt : 

"  Pudet  illas  fiduciae  suae  ; 

"  Perveniunt  illuc,  et  erubescunt."27(o) 

27  JOB  vi.  15—20. 


LECTURE  XIII. 


OF    THE    PROSOPOPOEIA,     OR    PERSONIFICATION 

Two  kinds  of  Personification :  when  a  character  is  assigned  to  fictitious  or  inanimate  objects, 
and  when  a  probahle  speech  is  attributed  to  a  real  person — Of  fictitious  and  inanimate  char- 
acters ;  of  real  characters — The  Prosopopoeia  of  the  mother  of  Sisera  (in  the  song  of  Deb- 
orah) explained  :  also  the  triumphal  song  of  the  Israelites  concerning  the  death  of  the  king 
of  Babylon,  (in  Isaiah)  which  consists  altogether  of  this  figure,  and  exhibits  it  in  all  its  dif- 
ferent forms. 

THE  last  in  order  of  those  figures,  which  I  proposed  to  treat  of, 
as  being  most  adapted  to  the  parabolic  style,  is  the  Prosopopoeia,  or 
Personification. (A)  Of  this  figure  there  are  two  kinds.  One,  when 
action  and  character  are  attributed  to  fictitious,  irrational,  or  even 
inanimate  objects ;  the  other,  when  a  probable  but  fictitious  speech 
is  assigned  to  a  real  character.  The  former  evidently  partakes  of 
the  nature  of  the  metaphor,  and  is  by  far  the  boldest  and  most  dar- 
ing of  that  class  of  figures.  Seasonably  introduced,  therefore,  it  has 
uncommon  force  and  expression ;  and  in  no  hands  whatever  is  more 
successful  in  this  respect  than  in  those  of  the  Hebrew  writers  :  I 
may  add  also,  that  none  more  frequently  or  more  freely  introduce  it. 

In  the  first  place  then,  with  respect  to  fictitious  characters,  the 
Hebrews  have  this  in  common  with  other  poets,  that  they  frequently 
assign  character  and  action  to  an  abstract  or  general  idea,  and  in- 
troduce it  in  a  manner  acting,  and  even  speaking  as  upon  a  stage. 
In  this,  while  they  equal  the  most  refined  writers  in  elegance  and 
grace,  they  greatly  excel  the  most  sublime  in  force  and  majesty. 
What,  indeed,  can  be  conceived  apter,  more  beautiful,  or  more  sub- 
lime, than  that  personification  of  Wisdom,  which  Solomon  so  fre- 
quently introduces  ?  exhibiting  her  not  only  as  the  director  of  hu- 
man life  and  morals,  as  the  inventor  of  arts,  as  the  dispenser  of 
wealth,  of  honour,  and  of  real  felicity  ;  but  as  the  immortal  offspring 
of  the  omnipotent  Creator,  and  as  the  eternal  associate  in  the  divine 

counsels : 

"  Cum  lehova  coelos  ornaret,  ego  adfui ; 

"  Cum  super  faciem  abyssi  circulum  describeret : 

"  Cum  superne  firmaret  aetheraj 

"  Cum  stabiliret  abyssi  fontes  : 


LECT.  XIII.  PERSONIFICATION.  105 

"  Cum  marl  decretum  suum  ederet, 

"  Ne  aquae  transirent  praescriptum  limitem, 

"  Cum  designaret  telluris  fundamenta : 

"  Turn  aderam  illi  alumna, 

"  Et  eram  quotidianae  deliciae, 

"  Coram  illo  ludebam  iugiter  : 

"  Ludebam  in  orbe  terrarum  eius, 

"  Et  deliciae  meae  cum  filiis  hominum."1 

How  admirable  is  that  celebrated  personification  of  the  divine  attri- 
butes by  the  Psalmist  ?  How  just,  elegant,  and  splendid  does  it  ap- 
pear, if  applied  only  according  to  the  literal  sense,  to  the  restoration 
of  the  Jewish  nation  from  the  Babylonish  captivity  ?  but  if  interpret- 
ed as  relating  to  that  sublimer,  more  sacred  and  mystical  sense, 
which  is  not  obscurely  shadowed  under  the  ostensible  image,  it  is 
certainly  uncommonly  noble  and  elevated,  mysterious  and  sublime : 

"  Misericordia  et  veritas  sibi  invincem  occurrunt ; 
"  lustitia  et  pax  se  mutuo  osculantur:"2 

There  are  many  passages  of  a  similar  kind,  exquisitely  imagined, 
and,  from  the  boldness  of  the  fiction,  extremely  forcible.  Such  is 
that  in  Habakkuk,  of  the  Pestilence  marching  before  JEHOVAH  when 
he  comes  to  vengeance  :  that  in  Job,  in  which  Destruction  and 
Death  affirm  of  Wisdom,  that  her  fame  only  had  come  to  their  ears  : 
in  fine  (that  I  may  not  be  tedious  in  quoting  examples)  that  tremen- 
dous image  in  Isaiah,  of  Hades  extending  her  throat,  and  opening 
her  insatiable  and  immeasurable  jaws.3 

There  is  also  another  most  beautiful  species  of  personification, 
which  originates  from  a  well  known  Hebrew  idiom,  and  on  that  ac- 
count is  very  familiar  to  us  ;  I  allude  to  that  form  of  expression,  by 
which  the  subject,  attribute,  accident,  or  effect  of  any  thing  is  de- 
nominated the  son.  Hence  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  nations,  regions, 
peoples,  are  brought  upon  the  stage  as  it  were  in  a  female  character  : 

"  Descend  and  sit  in  the  dust,  O  virgin,  daughter  of  Babylon ; 

"  Sit  on  the  bare  ground  without  a  throne,  O  daughter  of  the  Chaldeans  : 

"  For  thou  shalt  no  longer  be  called  the  tender  and  the  delicate. "^(B) 

"  Luget,  sedetque  sola  humi,  virgo  Sionis  filia: 

"  Flet  nocte  semper  inquies,  semper  genis  mandentibus  j 

"  Manusque  tendit  supplices,  nee  invenit  solatia. "5 

1  Prov.  viii.  27—31  2  psal.  Ixxxv.  11. 

3  Hab.  iii.  5.     Job.  xxviii.  22.    Isai.  v.  if 

4  I>ai.  xlvii.  1,  etc.  5  Lam.  i.  1,  etc. 

14 


106  PERSONIFICATION.  L.ECT.  XIII. 

Unless  we  attend  to  this  peculiar  phraseology,  such  expressions  as 
the  "  Sons  of  the  bow  and  of  the  quiver"  for  arrows,  will  seem  ex- 
tremely harsh  and  unnatural ;  as  well  as  that  remarkable  personifi- 
cation of  Job,  denoting  the  most  miserable  death,  "  The  first-born 
of  the  progeny  of  death."6 

The  parabolic  style  no  less  elegantly  assigns  a  character  and 
action  to  inanimate  objects  than  to  abstract  ideas.  The  holy  proph- 
ets, moved  with  just  indignation  against  the  ungrateful  people  of 
God,  "  obtest  the  Heavens  and  the  earth,  and  command  universal 
nature  to  be  silent.  They  plead  their  cause  before  the  mountains, 
and  the  hills  listen  to  their  voice."7  All  is  animated  and  informed 
with  life,  soul  and  passion  : 

"  Laetentur  coeli,  et  exultet  terra, 

"  Et  edicant  per  gentes,  lehova  regnat. 

"  Fremitum  edat  mare,  et  quod  eo  continetur ; 

"  Orbis,  et  eius  incolae  : 

"  Palmas  suas  complodant  fluvii, 

"  Certatim  monies  in  cantum  prorumpant  : 

"  Coram  lehova,  nam  advenit, 

"  Nam  advenit  iudicatum  terram." 

"  Viderunt  te  aquae,  o  Deus ; 

"  Viderunt  te  aquae,  dolore  correptae  sunt :. 

"  Vocem  suam  edidit  abyssus  ; 

"  Manus  suas  sublime  extulit."8 

And  Job  admirably  in  the  same  style  : 

"  Num  ire  iubebis  fulgura,  et  ibunt ; 

"  Et  dicent  tibi,  en  praesto  sumus  !"9 

With  equal  success  they  introduce  objects,  which  have  no  existence 
in  the  order  and  economy  of  nature  ;  though  it  must  be  confessed, 
that  it  is  attended  with  much  greater  hazard  of  propriety  ;  for  to 
those,  which  are  within  the  province  of  nature,  we  readily  attribute 
a  degree  of  life  and  sentiment.  Of  this  the  following  dialogue  in 
Jeremiah  is  an  admirable  specimen  : 

"  Eheu  !  o  ensis  lehovae,  quousque  non  quiesces  ? 

"  Recipe  te  in  vaginam,  subsiste,  et  sile. 

"  Quomodo  quiesceret,  cum  lehovae  ei  mandata  dederit  ? 

"  Ad  Ascalonem  et  ad  oram  maritimam,  illuc  ei  condixit.'  10 

6  Job.  xli.  19.    Lam.  iii.  13.     Job  xviii.  13. 

7  Deut  xxxii.  1.     Isai.  i.  2.     Mic.  vi.  1. 

8  1  Chron.  xvi.  31.      Psal.  xcviii.  7,  8.      Psal.  xcvi.  13.      Psal.  Ixxvii.  16-. 
Habak.  iii.  10. 

9  Job  xxxviii.  35.  10  JBR.  xlvii.  6.  7.. 


O* 

LECT.  XIII.  PERSONIFICATION.  107 

, 

The  other  kind  of  prosopopoeia,  to  which  I  alluded  in  the  former 
part  of  this  lecture,  is  that,  by  which  a  probable  but  fictitious  speech 
is  assigned  to  a  real  person.  As  the  former  is  calculated  to  excite 
admiration  and  approbation  by  its  novelty,  boldness,  and  variety  ; 
so  the  latter,  from  its  near  resemblance  to  real  life,  is  possessed  of 
great  force,  evidence,  and  authority. 

It  would  be  an  infinite  task  to  specify  every  instance  in  the  sa- 
cred poems,  which  on  this  occasion  might  be  referred  to  as  worthy 
of  notice ;  or  to  remark  the  easy,  the  natural,  the  bold  and  sudden 
personifications ;  the  dignity,  importance,  and  impassioned  severity 
of  the  characters.  It  would  be  difficult  to  describe  the  energy  of 
that  eloquence  which  is  attributed  to  JEHOVAH  himself,  and  which 
appears  so  suitable  in  all  respects  to  the  Divine  Majesty  ;  or  to  disT 
play  the  force  and  beauty  of  the  language  which  is  so  admirably  and 
peculiarly  adapted  to  each  character  ;  the  probability  of  the  fiction  ; 
and  the  excellence  of  the  imitation.  One  example,  therefore,  must 
suffice  for  the  present ;  one  more  perfect  it  is  not  possible  to  produce. 
It  is  expressive  of  the  eager  expectation  of  the  mother  of  Sisera, 
from  the  inimitable  ode  of  the  prophetess  Deborah.11 

The  first  sentences  exhibit  a  striking  picture  of  maternal  soli- 
citude, both  in  words  and  actions  ;  and  of  a  mind  suspended  and  agi- 
tated between  hope  and  fear  : 

"  Per  fenestram  prospexit  et  clamavit 

"  Mater  Siserae  per  cancellos  : 

"  Cur  pudet  currum  eius  venire  ? 

"  Cur  morantur  quadrigarum  eius  incessus  ?" 

Immediately,  impatient  of  his  delay,  she  anticipates  the  consolations 
of  her  friends,  and  her  mind  being  somewhat  elevated,  she  boasts 
with  all  the  levity  of  a  fond  female  ; 

Vast  in  her  hopes  and  giddy  with  success  : 

"  Sapientes  primariae  eius  foeminae  certatim  ei  respondent ; 
"  Imo  ipsa  sibi  suos  sermones  illico  reddit : 
"  Annon  iam  assequentur,  divident  praedam?" 

Let  us  now  observe,  how  well  adapted  every  sentiment,  every  word 
is  to  the  character  of  the  speaker.  She  takes  no  account  of  the 
slaughter  of  the  enemy,  of  the  valour  and  conduct  of  the  conqueror, 
of  the  multitude  of  the  captives,  but 

Burns  with  a  female  thirst  of  prey  and  spoils. 

11  JUD.  v.  28—30. 


108  PERSONIFICATION.  L.ECT.  XIII. 

Nothing  is  omitted,  which  is  calculated  to  attract  and  engage  the 
passions  of  a  vain  and  trifling  woman,  slaves,  gold,  and  rich  apparel. 
Nor  is  she  satisfied  with  the  bare  enumeration  of  them  ;  she  repeats, 
she  amplifies,  she  heightens  every  circumstance  ;  she  seems  to  have 
the  very  plunder  in  her  immediate  possession  ;  she  pauses  and  con- 
templates every  particular  : 

1  Annon  iam  assequentur,  divident  praedam  ? 

{  Ancillam,  imo  duas  unicuique  ancillas  ? 

'  Praedam  versicolorem  Siserae  ? 

'  Praedam  versicolorem,  acupictam  ; 

'  Coloratam,  utrinque  acupictam,  collo  exuvium  ?" 

To  add  to  the  beauty  of  this  passage,  there  is  also  an  uncommon 
neatness  in  the  versification,  great  force,  accuracy,  and  perspicuity 
in  the  diction,  the  utmost  elegance  in  the  repetitions,  which,  not- 
withstanding their  apparent  redundancy,  are  conducted  with  the 
most  perfect  brevity.  In  the  end,  the  fatal  disappointment  of.  female 
hope  and  credulity,  tacitly  insinuated  by  the  sudden  and  unexpect- 
ed apostrophe, 

"  Sic  pereant  omnes  inimici  tui,  o  lehova  !" 

is  expressed  more  forcibly  by  this  very  silence  of  the  person  who 
was  just  speaking,  than  it  could  possibly  have  been  by  all  the  pow- 
ers of  language. (c) 

But  whoever  wishes  to  understand  the  full  force  and  excellence 
of  this  figure,  as  well  as  the  elegant  use  of  it  in  the  Hebrew  ode, 
must  apply  to  Isaiah,  whom  I  do  not  scruple  to  pronounce  the  sub- 
limest  of  poets.  He  will  there  find,  in  one  short  poem,  examples  of 
almost  every  form  of  the  prosopopreia,  and  indeed  of  all  that  consti- 
tutes the  sublime  in  composition.  I  trust  it  will  not  be  thought  un- 
seasonable to  refer  immediately  to  the  passage  itself,  and  to  remark 
a  few  of  the  principal  excellencies.12 

The  prophet,  after  predicting  the  liberation  of  the  Jews  from 
their  severe  captivity  in  Babylon,  and  their  restoration  to  their  own 
country,  introduces  them  as  reciting  a  kind  of  triumphal  song  upon 
the  fall  of  the  Babylonish  monarch,  replete  with  imagery,  and  with 
the  most  elegant  and  animated  personifications.  A  sudden  exclama- 
tion, expressive  of  their  joy  and  admiration  on  the  unexpected  revo- 
lution in  their  affairs,  and  the  destruction  of  their  tyrants,  forms  the 
exordium  of  the  poem.  The  earth  itself  triumphs  with  the  inhabi- 

12  ISAI.  xiv.  4—27. 


LECT.  XIII.  PERSONIFICATION.  109 

tants  thereof ;  the  fir  trees,  and  the  cedars  of  Lebanon  (under 
which  images  the  parabolic  style  frequently  delineates  the  kings  and 
princes  of  the  Gentiles)  exult  with  joy,  and  persecute  with  contemp- 
tuous reproaches  the  humbled  power  of  a  ferocious  enemy  : 

"  Quiescit,  tranquilla  est  tola  tellus ;    erumpunt  in  cantum  : 
"  Etiajn  abietes  laetantur  propter  te,  cedri  Libani ; 
"  Ex  quo  iacuisti,  non  ascendit  in  nos  vastator." 

This  is  followed  by  a  bold  and  animated  personification  of  Hades,  or 
the  infernal  regions.  Hades  excites  his  inhabitants,  the  ghosts  of 
princes,  and  the  departed  spirits  of  kings :  they  rise  immediately 
from  their  seats,  and  proceed  to  meet  the  monarch  of  Babylon  ;  they 
insult  and  deride  him,  and  comfort  themselves  with  the  view  of  his 
calamity  : 

"  Tune  etiam  debilitatus  es,  ut  nos  ?  nostri  similis  factus  es  ? 

"  Demissa  est  ad  orcum  superbia  tua,  strepitus  cithararum  tuarum  ? 

"  Subter  te  sternitur  vermis,  et  tegumentum  tuum  lumbricus  ?" 

Again,  the  Jewish  people  are  the  speakers,  in  an  exclamation  after 
the  manner  of  a  funeral  lamentation,  which  indeed  the  whole  form  of 
this  composition  exactly  imitates.  The  remarkable  fall  of  this  pow- 
erful monarch  is  thus  beautifully  illustrated  : 

"  Quomodo  decidisti  de  coelo,  o  Lucifer,  fili  Aurorae  ! 
"  Deturbatus  es  in  terram,  qui  subegisti  gentes  !" 

He  himself  is  at  length  brought  upon  the  stage,  boasting  in  the  most 
pompous  terms  of  his  own  power,  which  furnishes  the  poet  with  an 
excellent  opportunity  of  displaying  the  unparalleled  misery  of  his 
downfal.  Some  persons  are  introduced,  who  find  the  dead  carcass 
of  the  king  of  Babylon  cast  out  and  exposed ;  they  attentively  con- 
template it,  and  at  last  scarcely  know  it  to  be  his : 

"  Hiccine  vir  ille,  qui  tremefecit  terram,  commovit  regna  ? 
"  Qui  orbem  redegit  in  solitudinem,  urbesque  eius  diruit?" 

They  reproach  him  with  being  denied  the  common  rites  of  sepul- 
ture, on  account  of  the  cruelty  and  atrocity  of  his  conduct ;  they  ex- 
ecrate his  name,  his  offspring,  and  their  posterity.  A  solemn  ad- 
dress, as  of  the  Deity  himself,  closes  the  scene,  and  he  denounces 
against  the  king  of  Babylon,  his  posterity,  and  even  against  the  city, 
which  was  the  seat  of  their  cruelty,  perpetual  destruction,  and  con- 
firms the  immutability  of  his  own  counsels  by  the  solemnity  of  an 
oath. 

How  forcible  is  this  imagery,  how  diversified,  how  sublime  !  how 


110  PERSONIFICATION.  LjECT.  XIII. 

elevated  the  diction,  the  figures,  the  sentiments ! — The  Jewish  na- 
tion, the  cedars  of  Lebanon,  the  ghosts  of  departed  kings,  the  Baby- 
lonish monarch,  the  travellers  who  find  his  corpse,  and  last  of  all,  JE- 
HOVAH himself,  are  the  characters  which  support  this  beautiful  lyric 
drama.  One  continued  action  is  kept  up,  or  rather  a  series  of  inter- 
esting actions  are  connected  together  in  an  incomparable  whole  : 
this,  indeed,  is  the  principal  and  distinguished  excellence  of  the  sub- 
limer  ode,  and  is  displayed  in  its  utmost  perfection  in  this  poem  of 
Isaiah,  which  may  be  considered  as  one  of  the  most  ancient,  and 
certainly  the  most  finished  species  of  that  composition,  which  has  been 
transmitted  to  us.  The  personifications  here  are  frequent,  yet  not 
confused  ;  bold,  yet  not  improbable  :  a  free,  elevated,  and  truly  di» 
vine  spirit  pervades  the  whole ;  nor  is  there  any  thing  wanting  in 
this  ode  to  defeat  its  claim  to  the  character  of  perfect  beauty  and  sub- 
limity. If,  indeed,  I  may  be  indulged  in  the  free  declaration  of  my 
own  sentiments  on  this  occasion,  I  do  not  know  a  single  instance  in 
the  whole  compass  of  Greek  and  Roman  poetry,  which,  in  every 
excellence  of  composition,  can  be  said  to  equal,  or  even  to  ap- 
proach it.(D) 


LECTURE   XIV. 


OP  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL,  AND  OP  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION  IN 
PARTICULAR. 

IIL  In  what  manner  the  word  V  fc'to  implies  the  idea  of  Sublimity — Sublimity  of  language  and 
sentiment — On  what  account  the  poetic  diction  of  the  Hebrews,  either  considered  in  itself,  or 
compared  with  prose  composition,  merits  an  appellation  expressive  of  sublimity — The  sub- 
limity of  the  poetic  diction  arises  from  the  passions — How  far  the  poetic  diction  differs  from 
prose  among  the  Hebrews — Certain  forms  of  poetic  diction  and  construction  exemplified  from 
Job,  Chap,  iii 

HAVING  in  the  preceding  lectures  given  my  sentiments  at  large 
on  the  nature  of  the  figurative  style,  on  its  use  and  application  in  po- 
etry, and  particularly  in  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews ;  I  proceed  to 
treat  of  the  Sublimity  of  the  sacred  poets ;  a  subject  which  has  been 
already  illustrated  by  many  examples  quoted  upon  other  occasions  j 
but  which,  since  we  have  admitted  it  as  a  third  characteristic  of  the 
poetic  style,  now  requires  to  be  distinctly  explained.  We  have  al- 
ready seen  that  this  is  implied  in  one  of  the  senses  of  the  word 
^ZJ£,  it  being  expressive  of  power,  or  supreme  authority,  and  when 
applied  to  style,  seems  particularly  to  intimate  something  eminent  or 
energetic,  excellent  or  important.  This  is  certainly  understood  in 
the  phrase  "  to  take  (or  lift)  up  his  parable ;"  that  is,  to  express  a 
great  or  lofty  sentiment.  The  very  first  instance,  in  which  the 
phrase  occurs,  will  serve  as  an  example  in  point.  For  in  this  man- 
ner Balaam  "  took  up,"  as  our  translation  renders  it,  "  his  parable, 
and  said :" 

"  Ex  Aramaea  me  arcessivit  Balacus  ; 

"  Rex  Moabitarum  ex  montibus  Orientis  : 

"  Veni,  execrate  mihi  lacobum ; 

"  Et  veni,  detestare  Israelem. 

"  Quomodo  maledicam,  cui  non  maledixit  Deus  ? 

"  Aut  quomodo  detestabor,  quern  non  detestatus  est  lehova  ? 

"  Nam  e  vertice  rupium  eum  aspiciam, 

"  Et  ex  collibus  eum  contemplabor ; 

"  En  populum,  qui  seorsum  habitabit, 

"  Neque  eese  gentibus  annumerabit ! 


112  THE  SUBLIME   IN  GENERAL.  L.ECT.  XIV. 

"  Quis  percensuit  pulverem  lacobi  ? 
"  Aut  numerum  vel  quartae  partis  Israelis  ? 
"  Moriatur  anima  mea  morte  iustorum  j 
"  Et  fit  exitus  meus  illius  instar  !"1 

Let  us  now  consider,  on  what  account  this  address  of  the  prophet  is 
entitled  bilJtt.  The  sentences  are  indeed  accurately  distributed  in 
parallelisms,  as  may  be  discovered  even  in  the  translation,  which  has 
not  entirely  obscured  the  elegance  of  the  arrangement :  and  compo- 
sitions in  this  form,  we  have  already  remarked,  are  commonly  class- 
ed among  the  proverbs  and  adages,  which  are  properly  called  IFriJJB, 
though  perhaps  they  contain  nothing  of  a  proverbial  or  didactic  na- 
ture. But  if  we  attentively  consider  this  very  passage,  or  others  in- 
troduced by  the  same  form  of  expression,  we  shall  find,  in  all  of 
them,  either  an  extraordinary  variety  of  figure  and  imagery  ;  or  an 
elevation  of  style  and  sentiment ;  or  perhaps  an  union  of  all  these 
excellencies ;  which  will  induce  us  to  conclude,  that  something 
more  is  meant  by  the  term  to  which  I  am  alluding  than  the  bare 
merit  of  a  sententious  neatness.  If  again  we  examine  the  same  pas- 
sage in  another  point  of  view,  we  shall  discover  in  it  little  or  nothing 
of  the  figurative  kind,  at  least  according  to  our  ideas,  or  according  to 
that  acceptation  of  the  word  >ttja  which  denotes  figurative  lan- 
guage ;  there  is  evidently  nothing  in  it  of  the  mystical  kind,  noth- 
ing allegorical,  no  pomp  of  imagery,  no  comparison,  and  in  fourteen 
verses  but  a  single  metaphor  :  as  far,  therefore,  as  figurative  lan- 
guage is  a  characteristic  of  the  parabolic  style,  this  is  no  instance  of 
it.  We  must  then  admit  the  word  parable,  when  applied  to  this 
passage,  to  be  expressive  of  those  exalted  sentiments,  that  spirit  of 
sublimity,  that  energy  and  enthusiasm,  with  which  the  answer  of  the 
prophet  is  animated.  By  this  example  I  wished  to  explain  on  what 
reasons  I  was  induced  to  suppose  that  the  term  bttJft,  as  well  from 
its  proper  power  or  meaning,  as  from  its  usual  acceptation,  involves 
an  idea  of  sublimity ;  and  that  the  Hebrew  poetry  expresses  in  its 
very  name  and  title,  the  particular  quality  in  which  it  so  greatly  ex- 
cels the  poetry  of  all  other  nations.2 

The  word  sublimity  I  wish  in  this  place  to  be  understood  in  its 
most  extensive  sense  :  I  speak  not  merely  of  that  sublimity,  which 
exhibits  great  objects  with  a  magnificent  display  of  imagery  and  dic- 
tion ;  but  that  force  of  composition,  whatever  it  be,  which  strikes 
and  overpowers  the  mind,  which  excites  the  passions,  and  which  ex- 

1  NUMB,  xxiii.  7 — 10.  2  See  Lect.  iv.  Note  A>  and  E. 


.  XIV.  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL.  113 

presses  ideas  at  once  with  perspicuity  and  elevation  ;  not  solicitous 
whether  the  language  be  plain  or  ornamented,  refined  or  familiar : 
in  this  use  of  the  word  I  copy  Longinus,  the  most  accomplished  au- 
thor on  this  subject,  whether  we  consider  his  precepts  or  his  ex- 
ample. 

The  sublime  consists  either  in  language  or  sentiment,  or  more 
frequently  in  an  union  of  both,  since  they  reciprocally  assist  each 
other,  and  since  there  is  a  necessary  and  indissoluble  connexion  be- 
tween them :  this,  however,  will  not  prevent  our  considering  them 
apart  with  convenience  and  advantage.  The  first  object,  therefore, 
which  presents  itself  for  our  investigation,  is,  upon  what  grounds  the 
poetic  diction  of  the  Hebrews,  whether  considered  in  itself,  or  in 
comparison  with  prose  composition,  is  deserving  of  an  appellation 
immediately  expressive  of  sublimity. 

The  poetry  of  every  language  has  a  style  and  form  of  expression 
peculiar  to  itself;  forcible,  magnificent,  and  sonorous ;  the  words 
pompous  and  energetic  ;  the  composition  singular  and  artificial ;  the 
whole  form  and  complexion  different  from  what  we  meet  with  in 
common  life,  and  frequently  (as  with  a  noble  indignation)  breaking 
down  the  boundaries  by  which  the  popular  dialect  is  confined.  The 
language  of  reason  is  cool,  temperate,  rather  humble  than  elevated, 
well  arranged  and  perspicuous,  with  an  evident  care  and  anxiety  lest 
any  thing  should  escape  which  might  appear  perplexed  or  obscure. 
The  language  of  the  passions  is  totally  different :  the  conceptions 
burst  out  in  a  turbid  stream,  expressive  in  a  manner  of  the  internal 
conflict ;  the  more  vehement  break  out  in  hasty  confusion ;  they 
catch  (without  search  or  study)  whatever  is  impetuous,  vivid,  or  en- 
ergetic. In  a  word,  reason  speaks  literally,  the  passions  poetically. 
The  mind,  with  whatever  passion  it  be  agitated,  remains  fixed  upon 
the  object  that  excited  it ;  and  while  it  is  earnest  to  display  it,  is  not 
satisfied  with  a  plain  and  exact  description  ;  but  adopts  one  agreea- 
ble to  its  own  sensations,  splendid  or  gloomy,  jocund  or  unpleasant. 
For  the  passions  are  naturally  inclined  to  amplification ;  they  won- 
derfully magnify  and  exaggerate  whatever  dwells  upon  the  mind,  and 
labour  to  express  it  in  animated,  bold,  and  magnificent  terms.  This 
they  commonly  effect  by  two  different  methods ;  partly  by  illustrat- 
ing the  subject  with  splendid  imagery,  and  partly  by  employing  new 
and  extraordinary  forms  of  expression,  which  are  indeed  possessed  of 
great  force  and  efficacy  in  this  respect  especially,  that  they  in  some 
degree  imitate  or  represent  the  present  habit  and  state  of  the  soul. 

15 


114  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL.  L.ECT.  XIV. 

Hence  those  theories  of  rhetoricians,  which  they  have  so  pompously- 
detailed,  attributing  that  to  art,  which  above  all  things  is  due  to  na- 
ture alone 

'  Format  enim  natura  prius  nos  intus  ad  omnem 
'  Fortunarum  habitum  :  iuvat,  aut  impellit  ad  iram, 
'  Aut  ad  humum  moerore  gravi  deducit  et  angit ; 
'  Post  effort  animi  motus  interprete  lingua. "3 

A  principle  which  pervades  all  poetry,  may  easily  be  conceived 
to  prevail  even  in  a  high  degree  in  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews.  In- 
deed we  have  already  seen  how  daring  these  writers  are  in  the  se- 
lection of  their  imagery,  how  forcible  in  the  application  of  it ;  and 
what  elegance,  splendour,  and  sublimity  they  have  by  these  means 
been  enabled  to  infuse  into  their  compositions.  With  respect  to  the 
diction  also,  we  have  had  an  opportunity  of  remarking  the  peculiar 
force  and  dignity  of  their  poetic  dialect ;  as  well  as  the  artificial  dis- 
tribution of  the  sentences,  which  appears  to  have  been  originally 
closely  connected  with  the  metrical  arrangement,  though  the  latter 
be  now  totally  lost.  We  are  therefore  in  the  next  place  to  consider 
whether  there  be  any  other  remarkable  qualities  in  the  poetical  lan- 
guage of  the  Hebrews,  which  serve  to  distinguish  it  from  prose  com- 
position. 

It  is  impossible  to  conceive  any  thing  more  simple  and  unadorn- 
ed than  the  common  language  of  the  Hebrews.  It  is  plain,  correct, 
chaste,  and  temperate ;  the  words  are  uncommon  neither  in  their  mean- 
ing nor  application ;  there  is  no  appearance  of  study,  nor  even  of 
the  least  attention  to  the  harmony  of  the  periods.  The  order  of  the 
words  is  generally  regular  and  uniform.  The  verb  is  the  first  word 
in  the  sentence,  the  noun,  which  is  the  agent,  immediately  succeeds, 
and  the  other  words  follow  in  their  natural  order.  Each  circum- 
stance is  exhibited  at  a  single  effort,  without  the  least  perplexity  or 
confusion  of  the  different  parts :  and,  what  is  remarkable,  by  the 
help  of  a  simple  particle,  the  whole  is  connected  from  the  beginning 
to  the  end  in  a  continued  series,  so  that  nothing  appears  inconsis- 
tent, abrupt,  or  confused.  The  whole  composition,  in  fine,  is  dis- 
posed in  such  an  order,  and  so  connected  by  the  continued  succes- 
sion of  the  different  parts,  as  to  demonstrate  clearly  the  regular  state 
of  the  author,  and  to  exhibit  the  image  of  a  sedate  and  tranquil 
mind.  But  in  the  Hebrew  poetry  the  case  is  different,  in  part  at 
least,  if  not  in  the  whole.  The  free  spirit  is  hurried  along,  and  has 

3HOR,  Art.  Poet.  v.  108—12. 


LECT.  XIV.  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL.  115 

neither  leisure  nor  inclination  to  descend  to  those  minute  and  frigid 
attentions.  Frequently,  instead  of  disguising  the  secret  feelings  of 
the  author,  it  lays  them  quite  open  to  public  view ;  and  the  veil  be- 
ing as  it  were  suddenly  removed,  all  the  affections  and  emotions  of 
the  soul,  its  sudden  impulses,  its  hasty  sallies  and  irregularities,  are 
conspicuously  displayed. 

Should  the  curious  inquirer  be  desirous  of  more  perfect  informa- 
tion upon  this  subject,  he  may  satisfy  himself,  I  apprehend,  with  no 
great  labour  or  difficulty.  Let  him  take  the  book  of  Job;  let  him 
read  the  historical  proem  of  that  book  ;  let  him  proceed  to  the  met- 
rical parts,  and  let  him  diligently  attend  to  the  first  speech  of  Job. 
He  will,  I  dare  believe,  confess,  that,  when  arrived  at  the  metrical 
part,  he  feels  as  if  he  were  reading  another  language ;  and  is  sur- 
prised at  a  dissimilarity  in  the  style  of  the  two  passages  much  great- 
er than  between  that  of  Livy  and  Virgil,  or  even  Herodotus  and 
Homer.  Nor  indeed  could  the  fact  be  otherwise,  according  to  the 
nature  of  things  ;  since  in  the  latter  passage  the  most  exquisite  pa- 
thos is  displayed,  such  indeed  as  has  not  been  exceeded,  and  scarce- 
ly equalled  by  any  effort  of  the  Muses.  Not  only  the  force,  the  beau- 
ty, the  sublimity  of  the  sentiments  are  unrivalled  ;  but  such  is  the 
character  of  the  diction  in  general,  so  vivid  is  the  expression,  so  in- 
teresting the  assemblage  of  objects,  so  close  and  connected  the  sen- 
tences, so  animated  and  passionate  the  whole  arrangement,  that  the 
Hebrew  literature  itself  contains  nothing  more  poetical.  The  great- 
er part  of  these  beauties  are  so  obvious,  that  they  cannot  possibly 
escape  the  eye  of  a  diligent  reader ;  there  are  some,  however, 
which,  depending  chiefly  upon  the  arrangement  and  construction, 
are  of  a  more  abstruse  nature.  It  also  sometimes  happens,  that 
those  beauties  which  may  be  easily  conceived,  are  very  difficult  to 
be.  explained  :  while  we  simply  contemplate  them,  they  appear  suffi- 
ciently manifest ;  if  we  approach  nearer,  and  attempt  to  touch  and 
handle  them,  they  vanish  and  escape.  Since,  however,  it  would  not 
be  consistent  with  my  duty  on  the  present  occasion  to  pass  them  by 
totally  unregarded,  I  shall  rely,  gentlemen,  upon  your  accustomed 
candour,  while  I  attempt  to  render,  if  possible,  some  of  those  elegan- 
cies more  obvious  and  familiar. 

The  first  thing  that  arrests  the  attention  of  the  reader  in  this  pas- 
sage, is  the  violent  sorrow  of  Job,  which  bursts  forth  on  a  sudden, 
and  flows  from  his  heart,  where  it  had  long  been  confined  and  sup- 
pressed : 


116  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL.  L.ECT.  XIV. 

"  Pereat  dies,  nasciturus  eram  in  eo  (i.  e.  quo  nasciturus  eram  ;) 
"  Et  nox  (quae)  dixit,  conceptus  est  vir."4 

Observe  here  the  concise  and  abrupt  form  of  the  first  verse  ;  and  in 
the  second,  the  boldness  of  the  figure,  and  the  still  more  abrupt 
conclusion.  Let  the  reader  then  consider,  whether  he  could  endure 
such  a  spirited,  vehement,  and  perplexed  form  of  expression  in  any 
prose  composition  ;  or  even  in  verse,  unless  it  were  expressive  of  the 
deepest  pathos. (A)  He  will  nevertheless,  I  doubt  not,  acknowledge 
that  the  meaning  of  this  sentence  is  extremely  clear,  so  clear  in- 
deed, that  if  any  person  should  attempt  to  make  it  more  copious  and 
explanatory,  he  would  render  it  less  expressive  of  the  mind  and  feel- 
ings of  the  speaker.  It  happens  fortunately  that  we  have  an  oppor- 
tunity of  making  the  experiment  upon  this  very  sentiment.  There 
is  a  passage  of  Jeremiah  so  exactly  similar,  that  it  might  almost  be 
imagined  a  direct  imitation :  the  meaning  is  the  same,  nor  is  there 
any  very  great  difference  in  the  phraseology ;  but  Jeremiah  fills  up 
the  ellipses,  smoothes  and  harmonizes  the  rough  and  uncouth  lan- 
guage of  Job,  and  dilates  a  short  distich  into  two  equal  distichs,  con- 
sisting of  somewhat  longer  verses,  which  is  the  measure  he  common- 
ly makes  use  of: 

"  Maledictus  sit  dies  ille,  in  quo  natus  sum  ! 

"  Dies,  quo  peperit  me  mater  mea,  sit  nefastus  ! 

"  Maledictus  sit  vir  ille,  qui  nuntiavit  patri  meo, 

"  Dicens,  natus  est  tibi  filius  mas,  magno  eum  gaudio  affecit."5 

Thus  it  happens,  that  the  imprecation  of  Jeremiah  has  more  in  it  of 
complaint  than  of  indignation ;  it  is  milder,  softer,  and  more  plain- 
tive, peculiarly  calculated  to  excite  pity,  in  moving  which  the  great 
excellence  of  this  prophet  consists  :  while  that  of  Job  is  more  adapt- 
ed to  strike  us  with  terror  than  to  excite  our  compassion. (B) 

But  to  proceed.  I  shall  not  trouble  you  with  a  tedious  discus- 
sion of  those  particulars  which  are  sufficiently  apparent ;  the  crowd- 
ed and  abrupt  sentences,  which  seem  to  have  little  connexion,  burst- 
ing from  the  glowing  bosom  with  matchless  force  and  impetuosity ; 
the  bold  and  magnificent  expressions,  which  the  eloquence  of  indig- 
nation pours  forth,  four  instances  of  which  occur  in  the  space  of 
twice  as  many  verses,6  and  which  seem  to  be  altogether  poetical : 
two  of  them  indeed  are  found  continually  in  the  poets,  and  in  them 
only ;  the  others  are  still  more  uncommon.  Omitting  these,  there- 

4  Jobiii.  3.  5  JKR.  xx.  14,15. 

6  Ver.  4,  5,  7.     listeVi  >  •'•V^teS, 


LECT.  XIV.  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL.  117 

fore,  the  object  which  at  present  seems  more  worthy  of  examination, 
is,  that  redundancy  of  expression,  which  in  a  few  lines  takes  place 
of  the  former  excessive  conciseness : 

"  Nox  ilia — occupet  illam  caligo."? 

In  this  also  there  is  the  strongest  indication  of  passion,  and'  a  per- 
turbed mind.  He  doubtless  intended  at  first  to  express  himself  in 

this  manner  : 

"  Nox  ilia  sitcaligo!"8 

But  in  the  very  act  of  uttering  it,  he  suddenly  catches  at  an  expres- 
sion, which  appears  more  animated  and  energetic.  I  do  not  know 
that  I  can  better  illustrate  this  observation  than  by  referring  to  a  pas- 
sage in  Horace,  in  which  a  similar  transition  and  redundancy  falls 
from  the  indignant  poet : 

"  Ille  et — nefasto  te  posuit  die 
"  Quicunque  primum  et  sacrilega  manu 
"  Produxit,  arbos,  in  nepotum 

"  Perniciem  opprobriumque  pagi — 
"  Ilium  et  parentis  crediderim  sui 
"  Fregisse  cervicem,  et  penetralia 
"  Sparsisse  nocturno  cruore 

"  Hospitis  ;  ille  venena  Colcha, 
"  Et  quicquid  usquarn  concipitur  nefas, 
"  Tractavit." 

For  undoubtedly  the  poet  begun,  as  if  he  intended  to  pursue  the 
subject  in  a  regular  order,  and  to  finish  the  sentence  in  this  form. 
"  He  who — planted  thee ;  he  was  accessary  to  the  murder  of  his 
parents,  and  sprinkled  his  chambers  with  the  blood  of  his  guest  ; 
he  dealt  in  the  poison  of  Cholchis,"  &/c.  But  anger  and  vexation 
dissipated  the  order  of  his  ideas,  and  destroyed  the  construction  of 
this  sentence.  But  should  some  officious  grammarian  take  in  hand 
the  passage,  (for  this  is  a  very  diligent  race  of  beings,  and  some- 
times more  than  sufficiently  exact  and  scrupulous)  and  attempt  to 
restore  it  to  its  primitive  purity  and  perfection,  the  whole  grace  and 
excellence  of  that  beautiful  exordium  would  be  immediately  annihi- 
lated, all  the  impetuosity  and  ardour  would  in  a  moment  be  extin- 
guished.— But  to  return  to  Job  : 

"  Ecce  !  nox  ista  sit  desolata  !"1° 

He  appears  to  have  a  direct  picture  or  image  of  that  night  before  his 
eyes,  and  to  point  it  out  with  his  finger.  "  The  doors  of  my  womb," 
for  "  the  doors  of  my  mother's  womb,"11  is  an  elliptical  form  of  ex- 

V  Ver.  6.        8  See  ver.  4.        9  Lib.  II.  Od.  xiii.         10  Ver.  7.         U  Ver.  10. 


118  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL.  L.ECT.  XIV. 

pression,  the  meaning  of  which  is  easily  cleared  up,  but  which  no 
person  in  a  tranquil  state  of  mind,  and  quite  master  of  himself,  would 
venture  to  employ.  Not  to  detain  you  too  long  upon  this  subject, 
I  shall  produce  only  one  passage  more,  which  is  about  the  conclusion 
of  this  animated  speech  : 

'  Quianam  dabit  aerumnoso  lucem, 

'  Et  vitam  amaris  animae  ? 

1  Qui  avide  expectant  mortem,  et  nulla  est ; 

'  Eamque  effoderent  prae  thesauris  abditis  : 

1  Qui  laetantur  usque  ad  exultationem, 

'  Triumpharent  gaudio  si  invenirent  sepulchrum : 

'  Viro,  cuius  via  e  conspectu  Dei  remota  est, 

'  Et  cui  aditum  ad  se  praeclusit  Deus  ? 

1  Nam  cibum  meum  perpetuo  praeveniunt  mea  suspiria, 

'  Et  pariter  cum  potu  effunduntur  rugitus  mei."12 

The  whole  composition  of  this  passage  is  admirable,  and  deserves  a 
minute  attention.  "  Wherefore  should  he  give  light  to  the  miser- 
able ?" — But  who  is  the  giver  alluded  to  ?  Certainly  God  himself, 
whom  Job  has  indeed  in  his  mind  ;  but  it  escaped  his  notice  that, 
no  mention  is  made  of  him  in  the  preceding  lines.  He  seems  to 
speak  of  the  miserable  in  general,  but  by  a  violent  and  sudden  tran- 
sition he  applies  the  whole  to  himself,  "  But  my  groaning  cometh 
like  my  daily  food."  It  is  plain,  therefore,  that  in  all  the  preceding 
reflections  he  has  himself  only  in  view.  He  makes  a  transition  from 
the  singular  to  the  plural,  and  back  again,  a  remarkable  amplifica- 
tion intervening,  expressive  of  his  desire  of  death,  the  force  and  bold- 
ness of  which  is  incomparable ;  at  last,  as  if  suddenly  recollecting 
himself,  he  returns  to  the  former  subject,  which  he  had  apparently 
quitted,  and  resumes  the  detail  of  his  own  misery.  From  these  ob- 
servations I  think  it  will  be  manifest,  that  the  agitated  and  disorder- 
ed state  of  the  speaker's  mind  is  not  more  evidently  demonstrated 
by  a  happy  boldness  of  sentiment  and  imagery,  and  an  uncommon 
force  of  language,  than  by  the  very  form,  conduct,  and  arrangement 
of  the  whole. 

The  peculiar  property  which  I  have  laboured  to  demonstrate  in  this 
passage,  will,  I  apprehend,  be  found  to  prevail  as  a  characteristic  of 
the  Hebrew  poetry,  making  due  allowance  for  different  subjects  and 
circumstances ;  I  mean  that  vivid  and  ardent  style,  which  is  so  well 
calculated  to  display  the  emotions  and  passions  of  the  mind.  Hence 
the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  abounds  with  phrases  and  idioms  totally 

12  Ver.  20—24. 


XIV.  THE  SUBLIME  IN  GENERAL.  119 

unsuited  to  prose  composition,  and  which  frequently  appear  to  us 
harsh  and  unusual,  I  had  almost  said  unnatural  and  barbarous  ; 
which,  however,  are  destitute  neither  of  meaning  nor  of  force,  were 
we  but  sufficiently  informed  to  judge  of  their  true  application.  It 
will,  however,  be  worth  our  while,  perhaps,  to  make  the  experiment 
on  some  other  passages  of  this  nature,  and  to  try  at  least  what  can 
be  done  towards  the  further  elucidation  of  this  point. 


LECTURE  XV. 


OF    SUBLIMITY    OF    EXPRESSION. 

The  character  of  the  poetic  dialect,  further  illustrated  by  examples  of  different  kinds  from  the 
Song  of  Moses,  Deut.  xxxii. — The  frequent  and  sudden  transition  from  one  person  to  another; 
its  cause  and  effects — The  use  of  the  tenses  in  a  manner  quite  different  from  common  lan- 
guage: the  reasons  of  this — The  Hebrew  language  peculiar  in  this  respect — The  future  is 
often  spoken  of  in  the  perfect  present,  and  the  past  in  the  future  tense  ;  the  reason  of  the 
former  easy  to  be  explained  ;  the  latter  is  a  matter  of  considerable  difficulty,  which  neither 
the  Commentators,  the  Translators,  nor  even  the  Grammarians  have  elucidated — Some  ex- 
amples of  this,  and  the  explanation  of  them — The  frequent  use  of  this  form  of  construction 
may  be  considered  as  characteristical  of  the  poetic  dialect. 

IN  order  to  demonstrate  more  completely  the  sublimity  of  the 
Hebrew  poetry  by  comparison  with  prose,  I  referred  the  student  of 
Hebrew  to  the  book  of  Job,  convinced  that  he  would  easily  perceive, 
both  in  the  matter  and  diction,  a  very  considerable  difference  between 
the  historical  introduction  of  that  book,  and  the  metrical  passages 
immediately  succeeding.  But  lest  these  passages  should  be  object- 
ed to,  as  improper  instances  for  such  a  comparison,  on  the  supposi- 
tion that,  although  both  of  them  were  written  entirely  either  in  verse 
or  prose,  yet  the  different  nature  of  the  subjects  would  require  a 
very  different  style ,  we  shall  now  make  the  experiment  on  some 
other  passages,  and  compare  the  manner  of  treating  the  same  sub- 
ject in  verse  and  prose.  The  book  of  Deuteronomy  will  afford  us 
a  convenient  instance  ;^for  Moses  appears  there  in  the  character 
both  of  an  orator  and  a  poet.  In  the  former  character,  he  address- 
es a  very  solemn  and  interesting  oration  to  the  people  of  Israel,1 
exhorting  them,  by  the  most  inviting  promises,  to  the  observance  of 
the  covenant,  and  dissuading  them  from  the  violation  of  it  by  threats 
of  the  most  exemplary  punishment :  and  for  the  purpose  of  impres- 
sing the  same  more  forcibly  on  their  minds,  he  afterwards,  by  the 
command  of  God,  embellishes  the  subject  with  all  the  elegance  of 
verse,2  in  a  poem,  which  bears  every  mark  of  divine  inspiration.  la 
these  two  passages  is  displayed  every  excellence  of  which  the  He- 
brew language  is  capable  in  both  species  of  composition  ;  all  that  is 

i  DEUT.  xxviii.  xxix.  xxx.  xxxi.  2  Chap,  xxxii. 


LECT.  XV.  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  121 

grand,  forcible,  and  majestic,  both  in  prose  and  verse  ;  From  them 
too  we  may  be  enabled  easily  to  comprehend  the  difference  between 
the  style  of  oratory  among  the  Hebrews,  and  that  of  their  poetry, 
not  only  in  sentiment,  but  in  the  imagery,  the  arrangement,  and  the 
language.  Whoever  wishes,  therefore,  to  satisfy  himself  concern- 
ing the  true  character  and  genius  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  I  would 
advise  carefully  to  compare  the  two  passages,  and  I  think  he  will 
soon  discover  that  the  former,  though  great,  spirited,  and  abounding 
with  ornament,  is  notwithstanding  regular,  copious,  and  diffuse  ; 
that,  with  all  its  vehemence  and  impetuosity,  it  still  preserves  a 
smoothness,  evenness,  and  uniformity  throughout ;  and  that  the  lat- 
ter, on  the  contrary,  consists  of  sentences,  pointed,  energetic,  con- 
cise, and  splendid  ;  that  the  sentiments  are  truly  elevated  and  sub- 
lime, the  language  bright  and  animated,  the  expression  and  phrase- 
ology uncommon  ;  while  the  mind  of  the  poet  never  continues  fixed 
to  any  single  point,  but  glances  continually  from  one  object  to  anoth- 
er. These  remarks  are  of  such  a  nature,  that  the  diligent  reader 
will  apprehend  them  better  by  experience  and  his  own  observation 
than  by  means  of  any  commentary  or  explanation  whatever.  There 
are,  however,  one  or  two  points  which  have  attracted  my  notice  in 
the  perusal  of  this  remarkable  poem  ;  and  as  they  are  of  general  use 
and  application,  and  may  serve  to  elucidate  many  of  the  difficult 
passages  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  they  appear  to  me  not  undeserving 
of  a  more  particular  examination. 

Taking,  therefore,  this  poem  as  an  example,  the  first  general 
observation,  to  which  I  would  direct  your  attention,  is  the  sudden 
and  frequent  change  of  the  persons,  and  principally  in  the  addresses 
or  expostulations  ;  for  enough  has  been  said  already  concerning  the 
introduction  of  different  characters  or  personifications.  In  the  exor- 
dium of  this  poem,  Moses  displays  the  truth  and  justice  of  Almigh- 
ty God,  most  sacredly  regarded  in  all  his  acts  and  counsels  :  whence 
he  takes  occasion  to  reprove  the  perfidy  and  wickedness  of  his  un- 
grateful people ;  at  first  as  if  his  censure  were  only  pointed  at  the 
absent  ; 

"  Corrupit  illi  filios,  non  iam  suos,  ipsorum  pravitas;"3 

He  then  suddenly  directs  his  discourse  to  themselves : 
"  Genus  perversum  et  distortum  ! 
<l  Hoccino  ergo  lehovae  rependetis, 
"  Natio  stulta  atque  insipiens  ? 

3  Ver.  5,  6. 

16 


122  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  L.ECT.  XV. 

"  Nonne  ipse  pater  est  tuus  etredemptor  tuus, 
"  Ipse  te  fecit  et  formavit?" 

After  his  indignation  has  somewhat  subsided,  adverting  to  a  remoter 
period,  he  beautifully  enlarges  upon  the  indulgence,  and  more  than 
paternal  affection,  continually  manifested  by  Almighty  God  towards 
the  Israelites,  from  the  time  when  he  first  chose  them  for  his  pecul- 
iar people  ;  and  all  this  again  without  seeming  directly  to  apply  it 
to  them.  He  afterwards  admirably  exaggerates  the  stupidity  and 
barbarity  of  this  ungrateful  people,  which  exceeds  that  of  the  brutes 
themselves.  Observe  with  what  force  the  indignation  of  the  prophet 
again  breaks  forth  : 

"  At  saginatus  est  leshurun  et  recalcitravit ; 

"  Saginatus  fuisti,  incrassatus,  adipe  obducto  coopertus  ! 

"  Et  deseruit.  Deum  creatorem  suum, 

"  Et  rupem  salutis  suae  vilipendit." 

The  abrupt  transition  in  one  short  sentence  to  the  Israelites,  and 
back  again,  is  wonderfully  forcible  and  pointed,  and  excellently  ex- 
pressive of  disgust  and  indignation.  There  is  a  passage  of  Virgil, 
which,  though  it  be  less  animated,  is  certainly  not  unworthy  of  being 
compared  with  this  of  Moses  ;  it  is  that  in  which,  by  an  ingenious 
apostrophe,  he  upbraids  the  traitor  with  his  crime,  and  at  the  same 
time  exonerates  the  king  from  the  imputation  of  cruelty  : 

"  Haud  procul  inde  citae  Metium  in  di versa  quadrigae 

"  Distulerant :  at  tu  dictis,  Albane,  maneres  : 

"  Raptabatque  viri  mendacis  viscera  Tullus 

"  Per  sylvam,  et  sparsi  rorabant  sanguine  vepres."4 

I  might  proceed,  and  produce  several  examples  in  point  from  the 
same  poem,  and  innumerable  from  other  parts  of  the  sacred  writings, 
different  from  each  other  both  in  expression  and  form.  These,  how- 
ever, are  sufficient  to  demonstrate  the  force  of  this  kind  of  composi- 
tion in  expressing  the  more  vehement  affections,  and  in  marking 
those  sudden  emotions,  which  distract  the  mind  and  divide  its  atten- 
tion. But  v  whoever  will  attend  with  any  diligence  to  the  poetry  of 
the  Hebrews,  will  find  that  examples  of  this  kind  almost  perpetually 
occur,  and  much  more  frequently,  than  could  be  endured  in  the  po- 
etry of  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  or  even  in  our  own  :  he  will  find 
many  of  these  instances  not  easy  to  be  understood ;  the  force  and 
design  of  some  of  them,  when  separately  considered,  are  indeed 
scarcely  to  be  explained  or  even  perfectly  comprehended.  The  rea- 


.  viii.  642. 


LECT.  XV.  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  123 

der  will  not,  however,  be  warranted  in  concluding  from  this  conces- 
sion, that  those  very  passages  which  are  most  obscure,  are  in  them- 
selves absurd,  and  that  they  possess  no  general  force  or  effect  in  dis- 
tinguishing the  diction,  in  sustaining  the  poetic  spirit,  and  in  form- 
ing that  peculiar  character,  which,  however  it  may  differ  from  what 
we  are  accustomed  to,  is  in  its  kind  altogether  deserving  of  ap- 
plause. In  this  case  we  ought  to  consider  the  proper  genius  and 
character  of  the  Hebrew  poetry.  It  is  unconstrained,  animated,  bold, 
and  fervid.  The  Orientals  look  upon  the  language  of  poetry  as 
wholly  distinct  from  that  of  common  life,  as  calculated  immediately 
for  expressing  the  passions  :  if,  therefore,  it  were  to  be  reduced  to 
the  plain  rule  and  order  of  reason,  if  every  word  and  sentence  were 
to  be  arranged  with  care  and  study,  as  if  calculated  for  perspicuity 
alone,  it  would  be  no  longer  what  they  intended  it,  and  to  call  it  the 
language  of  passion  would  be  the  grossest  of  solecisms. 

The  other  observation,  to  which  I  alluded  as  relating  both  to 
this  poem  and  to  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  in  general,  is,  that  you 
there  find  a  much  more  frequent  change  or  variation  of  the  tenses, 
than  occurs  in  common  language.  The  chief  aim  of  such  a  transi- 
tion, is,  to  render  the  subject  of  a  narration  or  description  more  strik- 
ing, and  even  to  embody  and  give  it  a  visible  existence.  Thus,  in  all 
languages,  in  prose  as  well  as  poetry,  it  is  usual  to  speak  of  past  as 
well  as  future  events  in  the  present  tense,  by  which  means  whatever 
is  described  or  expressed  is  in  a  manner  brought  immediately  before 
our  eyes ;  nor  does  the  mind  contemplate  a  distant  object,  by  look- 
ing back  to  the  past  or  forward  to  the  future.  But  in  this  respect 
there  is  a  great  peculiarity  in  the  Hebrew  language.  For  the  He- 
brew verbs  have  no  form  for  expressing  the  imperfect  or  indefinite 
of  the  present  tense,  or  an  action  which  now  is  performing  :  this  is 
usually  effected  by  a  participle  only,  or  by  a  verb  substantive  under- 
stood, neither  of  which  are  often  made  use  of  in  such  passages  as 
these,  nor  indeed  can  be  always  conveniently  admitted.  They, 
therefore,  take  another  method  of  attaining  this  end,  and  for  the 
sake  of  clearness  and  precision,  express  future  events  by  the  past 
tense,  or  rather  by  the  perfect  present,  as  if  they  had  actually  taken 
place  ;  and,  on  the  contrary,  past  events  by  the  future,  as  if  imme- 
diately or  speedily  to  happen,  and  only  proceeding  towards  their 
completion.  Of  the  first  of  these  forms  of  construction,  namely,  the 
expressing  of  the  future  by  the  past  tense,  an  instance  which  we  just 
now  quoted,  will  demonstrate  both  the  nature  and  the  effect. 


124  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  LECT.  XV. 

Moses  foreseeing,  by  the  impulse  of  divine  inspiration,  the  mise- 
rable neglect  of  the  true  worship,  into  which  the  people  of  Israel 
were  universally  to  relapse,  reprobates  in  the  following  terms  the 
vices  of  that  ungrateful  people,  as  if  they  had  been  already  commit- 
ted in  his  immediate  presence  : 

"  Corrupit  illi  filios,  non  iam  sues,  ipsorum  pravitas  :"  i 
Thus  he  speaks  as  if  he  were  the  actual  witness  of  their  depravity, 
and  present  at  those  impious  rites,  with  which  they  were  about  to 
violate  a  religion  divinely  instituted  through  his  means.  Nothing 
can  be  more  efficacious  than  this  kind  of  anticipation  to  the  clear, 
evident,  and  almost  ocular  demonstration  of  things.  On  this  ac- 
count it  is  a  very  common  mode  of  expression  in  the  prophetical 
writings ;  and  in  this,  as  in  every  other  excellence,  Isaiah  particu- 
larly challenges  our  highest  •  admiration.  Observe  only  with  what 
exactness  and  perspicuity  he  has  delineated  the  journey  of  Senna- 
cherib towards  Jerusalem,  and  the  different  stages  of  the  army ;  in- 
somuch that  the  light  and  evidence  which  the  prophet  throws  upon 
the  circumstances  of  the  prediction,  fall  nothing  short  of  the  clear- 
ness and  accuracy  of  a  historical  narration  : 

"  Venit  Aiatham  ;  transiit  per  Migronem  ; 

{  Michmasae  commisit  impedimenta  sua  : 

'  Superarunt  transitum  ;    Geba  illis  mansio ; 

1  Trepidavit  Rama ;  Gibea  Sauli  fugit : 

(  Ede  eiulatum,  o  filia  Gallimorum ; 

'  Attende  Laisam  versus,  o  afflicta  Anathotha ! 

'  Migravit  Madmena ;  Gebimenses  confugerunt. 

1  Adhuc  hodie  Nobae  ei  subsistendum  est ; 

'  Agitabit  manum  in  montem  filiae  Sionis,  collem  Hierosolymae."5(A) 

Thus  the  plague  of  locusts  is  denounced  and  described,  as  if  it  had 
already  happened,  by  the  prophet  Joel : 

'  Nam  invasit  terram  meam  natio 
'  Robusta  atque  innumerabilis  : 
'  Vitem  meam  desolatam  reddidit, 
1  Et  ficum  meam  decorticavit : 
'  Penitus  nudavit  earn,  et  abiicit; 
'  Dealbati  sunt  eius  palmites. 
'  Vastaus  est  ager,  luxit  terra."6 

The  prophet  is  undoubtedly  here  speaking  of  a  future  event ;  for, 
the  very  devastation,  which,  to  strike  the  more  forcibly  on  the  mind, 
he  has  thus  depicted  as  an  event  already  past,  is  threatened  by  him 

5  ISAI.  x.  28—32.  6  JOEL  i.  6,  7,  10,  etc. 


LECT.  XV.  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  1*25 

in  the  sequel,  under  another  image,  to  be  immediately  inflicted,  un- 
less the  people  repent  of  their  wickedness.7  Thus  far  the  Hebrew 
language  differs  not  materially  from  others  ;  those  future  actions  or 
events  which  other  writers,  for  the  sake  of  force  and  clearness,  ex- 
press in  the  imperfect  present,  the  Hebrews  express  in  the  perfect 
present  with  equal  effect. 

In  another  point,  it  must  be  confessed,  they  differ  essentially 
from  other  writers,  namely,  when  they  intimate  past  events  in  the 
form  of  the  future  tense  :  and  I  must  add,  that  this  is  a  matter  of 
considerable  difficulty.  If  we  resort  to  the  translators  and  commen- 
tators, so  far  are  they  from  affording  any  solution,  that  they  do  not 
so  much  as  notice  it,  accommodating  as  much  as  possible  the  form 
of  the  tenses  to  the  subject  and  context,  and  explaining  it  rather  ac- 
cording to  their  own  opinions,  than  according  to  the  rules  of  gram- 
mar, or  any  fixed  and  established  principles.  If  again  we  apply  to 
the  grammarians,  we  shall  still  find  ourselves  no  less  at  a  loss :  they, 
indeed,  remark  the  circumstance,  but  they  neither  explain  the  rea- 
son of  it,  nor  yet  are  candid  enough  to  make  a  fair  confession  of 
their  own  ignorance.  They  endeavour  to  confuse  their  disciples  by 
the  use  of  a  Greek  term,  and  have  always  at  hand  a  sort  of  inexpli- 
cable and  mysterious  enallage  or  change  of  the  tenses,  with  which, 
rather  than  say  nothing,  they  attempt  to  evade  a  closer  inquiry ;  as 
if  the  change  were  made  by  accident,  and  from  no  principle  or  mo- 
tive :  than  which  nothing  can  be  conceived  more  absurd  or  imperti- 
nent. That  these  apparent  anomalies,  however,  are  not  without 
their  peculiar  force  and  beauty,  I  have  not  a  doubt ;  that  many  of 
them  should  cause  difficulty  and  obscurity,  considering  the  great  an- 
tiquity of  the  Hebrew  language,  is  not  to  be  wondered  at.  Some 
light  may  notwithstanding  be  reflected  upon  the  subject,  by  a  care- 
ful-attention to  the  state  of  the  writer's  mind,  and  by  considering 
properly  what  ideas  were  likely  to  be  prevalent  in  his  imagination  at 
the  time  of  his  writing.  There  is  a  remarkable  instance  of  this  form 
of  construction  in  that  very  song  of  Moses,  to  which  we  have  just 
been  alluding.  After  mentioning  the  divine  dispensation,  by  which 
the  Israelites  were  distinguished  as  the  chosen  people  of  God,  he 
proceeds  to  state  with  what  love  and  tenderness  the  Almighty  had 
cherished  them,  from  the  time  in  which  he  brought  them  from 
Egypt,  led  them  by  the  hand  through  the  wilderness,  and,  as  it  were, 

7  JOEL  ii. 


126  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  L.ECT.  XV. 

carried  them  in  his  bosom :  all  these,  though  past  events,  are  ex- 
pressed in  the  future  tense  : 

"  Inveniet  eum  in  terra  deserta, 

"  Et  in  vasta  eiulanti  solitudine  : 

"  Circumdabit  eum,  edocebit  eum ; 

"  Custodiet  eum  tanquam  pupillam  oculi  sui."8 

You  will  readily  judge  whether  this  passage  can  admit  of  any  other 
explication,  than  that  of  Moses  supposing  himself  present  at  the 
time  when  the  Almighty  selected  the  people  of  Israel  for  himself; 
and  thence,  as  from  an  eminence,  contemplating  the  consequences 
of  that  dispensation.  The  case  will  be  found  similar  in  many  other 
passages ;  as,  in  particular,  more  than  once  in  that  historical  psalm, 
which  is  inscribed  with  the  name  of  Asaph.  After  the  prophet  has 
exposed  the  perfidy  of  the  people,  their  refractory  conduct  almost  in 
the  very  crisis  of  their  deliverance  from  the  Egyptian  bondage,  he  in 
a  manner  anticipates  in  his  mind  the  clemency  of  God,  and  the  re- 
peated transgressions  of  the  Israelites,  and  speaks  of  them  as  future 
events : 

"  Ille  tamen  misericors  condonabit  iniquitatem,  nee  perdet; 

"  Saepius  avertet  iram  suam, 

"  Neque  excitabit  omnem  suam  indignationem. — 

"  Quomodo  iam  irritabunt  eum  in  deserto, 

"  Discruciabunt  in  solitudine  !"9 

The  general  disposition  and  arrangement  of  the  hundred  and  fourth 
psalm  affords  a  most  elegant  exemplification  of  this  construction. 
For  the  prophet,  instancing  the  greatness  and  wisdom  of  God  in  the 
constitution  and  preservation  of  the  natural  world,  speaks  of  the  ac- 
tions and  decrees  of  the  Almighty  in  the  present  tense,  as  if  he  him- 
self had  been  a  witness  when  they  were  brought  to  light ;  and  dis- 
plays their  consequences  and  uses,  and  what  are  called  the  final 
causes,  in  the  future  tense,  as  if  looking  forward  from  the  beginning 
through  all  future  time. 

But  although  these  and  some  other  passages  will  admit  of  this 
explanation,  there  are  many  to  which  it  will  not  apply.  In  these  the 
situation  and  state  of  the  authors  are  not  so  much  to  be  considered, 
as  the  peculiar  nature  or  idiom  of  the  language.  For  the  Hebrews 
frequently  make  use  of  the  future  tense  in  such  a  manner,  that  it  ap- 
pears not  to  have  relation  to  the  present  speaker,  but  to  the  person 
or  thing  which  was  last  spoken  of.  Thus  when  any  action  is  con- 

8  DEUT.  xxxii.  10.  9  PSAL.  Ixxviii.  38,40. 


LECT.  XV.  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  127 

nected  with  another  action,  or  consequent  to  it ;  or  when  the  same 
action  is  repeated  or  continued,  when  a  person  perseveres  in  the 
same  action,  or  performs  it  with  great  earnestness  or  assiduity,  this 
is  all  expressed  as  if  it  were  future.10  This  form  is  therefore  distin- 
guished by  the  grammarians  by  the  appellation  "PITS*,  which  is  equiv- 
alent to  prompt,  expedite,  or  impending.  Examples  enough  to  this 
purpose  might  be  produced  from  the  passages  which  have  been  re- 
ferred to  on  former  occasions  :  for  instance,  from  that  most  elegant 
prosopoposia  of  the  mother  of  Sisera ;  from  the  allegory  of  the  vine, 
which  was  brought  out  of  Egypt ;  from  the  comparison  founded  on 
the  maternal  piety  and  solicitude  of  the  eagle  :n  the  form  and  man- 
ner of  all  which  may  be  easily  perceived  by  an  attentive  reader,  but 
cannot  be  well  explained  by  the  most  industrious  commentator. 

Now,  if,  as  I  have  stated,  this  unusual  form  of  construction  be 
the  effect  either  of  some  sudden  emotion  in  the  speaker,  of  some 
new  and  extraordinary  state  of  mind ;  or  if,  on  any  other  account, 
from  the  relation  of  the  subject,  or  the  genius  of  the  language,  it  be 
possessed  of  some  peculiar  force  or  energy ;  it  will  obviously  follow, 
that  it  must  more  frequently  occur  in  poetry  than  in  prose,  since  it  is 
particularly  adapted  to  the  nature,  the  versatility,  and  variety  of  the 
former,  and  to  the  expression  of  any  violent  passion  ;  and  since  it 
has  but  little  affinity  to  that  mildness  and  temperance  of  language, 
which  proceeds  in  one  uniform  and  even  tenour.  Thus  if  we  attend 
diligently  to  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews,  and  carefully  remark  its  pe- 
culiar characteristics,  we  shall  hardly  find  any  circumstance,  the 
regular  and  artificial  conformation  of  the  sentences  excepted,  which 
more  evidently  distinguishes  it  from  the  style  of  prose  composition, 
than  the  singularity  which  is  now  under  consideration.  For  though 
it  be  allowed,  that  this  idiom  is  not  so  entirely  inconsistent  with 
prose,  but  that  a  few  examples  of  it  might  be  produced,12  on  the 
whole  I  am  convinced,  that  the  free  and  frequent  use  of  it  may  be 
accounted  as  the  certain  characteristic  of  poetry. (B) 

That  the  full  force  of  these  and  other  peculiarities,  which  serve 
to  distinguish  the  poetical  diction  of  the  Hebrews,  and  to  preserve 
that  sublimity  and  splendour  for  which  it  is  so  remarkable,  should  be 

10  See  2  SAM.  xii.  3. 

11  JUDG.  v.  29.     Ps.  Ixxx.  9, 12, 14.     DEUT.  xxxii.  11. 

12  Hitherto  I  have  only  met  with  the  following  :  JUDG.  ii.  1.    (See  however 
HOUBIGANT  in   loc.)   and  xxi.    25.      1  SAM.    xxvii.   9,   11.     2  SAM.    xii.  31. 
1  KINGS  xxi.  6.    1  CHRON.  xi.  8.    See  also  PETERS  on  JOB,  page  202. 


128  SUBLIMITY  OF  EXPRESSION.  L.ECT.  XV. 

fully  apparent  from  a  few  examples,  is  hardly  to  be  expected ;  nor 
did  I  flatter  myself  with  any  such  expectation,  when  I  entered  upon 
this  part  of  my  subject.  My  intention  was  only  to  produce  an  in- 
stance or  two,  which  were  most  likely  to  occur  to  those  who  enter 
upon  this  course  of  reading,  and  which  appeared  to  demand  particu- 
lar attention.  The  perfect  character  and  genius,  the  whole  form, 
principles,  and  nature  of  the  poetical  diction  and  ornaments,  can 
neither  be  comprehended  in  any  minute  or  artificial  precepts  what- 
ever, nor  perhaps  be  reduced  altogether  to  rule  and  method :  the 
complete  knowledge  and  perception  of  these  are  only  to  be  attained 
by  reading  and  investigation,  united  with  acuteness  of  judgement 
and  delicacy  of  taste. 


LECTURE   XVI. 


OF  SUBLIMITY  OF  SENTIMENT. 

Sublimity  of  sentiment  arises,  either  from  elevation  of  mind, or  from  some  vehement  passion  ; 
in  each,  it  is  either  natural,  or  the  effect  of  divine  inspiration — Elevation  of  mind  is  displayed 
in  the  greatness  of  tho  subject,  the  adjuncts,  and  the  imagery — Examples  from  the  descrip- 
tions of  the  Divine  Majesty  ;  of  the  works  and  attributes  of  the  Deity  ;  also  from  the  dis- 
play of  the  Divine  Power  in  the  form  of  Interrogation  and  Irony — The  Hebrew  poets  attri- 
bute the  human  passions  to  the  Deity  without  departing  from  sublimity  ;  and  that  frequently 
when  the  imagery  appears  least  consistent  with  the  Divine  Majesty;  the  reason  of  this. 

IF  we  consider  the  very  intimate  connexion,  which  on  all  occa- 
sions subsists  between  sentiment  and  language,  it  will  perhaps  ap- 
pear, that  the  peculiar  quality,  of  which  we  have  just  been  treating, 
under  the  title  of  Sublimity  of  Expression,  might  ultimately  be  refer- 
red to  that  of  Sentiment.  In  the  strictest  sense,  however,  Sublimity 
of  Sentiment  may  be  accounted  a  distinct  quality,  and  may  be  said 
to  proceed,  either  from  a  certain  elevation  of  mind,  and  a  happy 
boldness  of  conception  ;  or  from  a  strong  impulse  of  the  soul,  when 
agitated  by  the  more  violent  affections.  The  one  is  called  by  Lon- 
ginus  Grandeur  of  Conception,  the  other  Vehemence  or  Enthusiasm 
of  Passion.  To  each  of  these  we  must  have  recourse  in  the  pres- 
ent disquisition,  and  in  applying  them  to  the  sacred  poets,  I  shall) 
endeavour  to  detract  nothing  from  the  dignity  of  that  inspiration,  \ 
which  proceeds  from  higher  causes,  while  I  allow  to  the  genius  of 
each  writer  his  own  peculiar  excellence  and  accomplishments.  I 
am  indeed  of  opinion,  that  the  Divine  Spirit  by  no  means  takes  such 
an  entire  possession  of  the  mind  of  the  prophet,  as  to  subdue  or  ex-  > 
tinguish  the  character  and  genius  of  the  man  :  the  natural  powers  ( 
of  the  mind  are  in  general  elevated  and  refined,  they  are  neither  era- 
dicated nor  totally  obscured  ;  and  though  the  writings  of  Moses,  of 
David,  and  of  Isaiah,  always  bear  the  marks  of  a  divine  and  celes- 
tial impulse,  we  may  nevertheless  plainly  discover  in  them  the  par- 
ticular characters  of  their  respective  authors. 

That  species  of  the  sublime,  which  proceeds  from  a  boldness  of 
spirit,  and  an  elevation  of  the  soul,  whether  inherent  in  the  author, 
or  derived  from  a  divine  impulse  and  inspiration,  is  displayed  first 

17 


13U  SUBLIMITY  OF  SENTIMENT.  LiECT.  XVI. 

in  the  greatness  and  sublimity  of  the  subject  itself;  secondly,  in  the 
choice  of  the  adjuncts  or  circumstances  (by  the  importance  and  mag- 
nitude of  which  a  degree  of  force  and  elevation  is  added  to  the  des- 
cription;) and  lastly,  in  the  splendour  and  magnificence  of  the  ima- 
gery, by  which  the  whole  is  illustrated.  In  all  these  the  Hebrew 
writers  have  obtained  an  unrivalled  preeminence.  As  far  as  re- 
spects the  dignity  and  importance  of  the  subject,  they  not  only  sur- 
pass all  other  writers,  but  even  exceed  the  confines  of  human  genius 
and  intellect.  The  greatness,  the  power,  the  justice,  the  immensity 
of  God  ;  the  infinite  wisdom  of  his  works  and  of  his  dispensations, 
are  the  subjects  in  which  the  Hebrew  poetry  is  always  conversant, 
and  always  excels.  If  we  only  consider  with  a  common  degree  of 
candour  how  greatly  inferior  the  poetry  of  all  other  nations  appears, 
whenever  it  presumes  to  treat  of  these  subjects  ;  and  how  unequal 
to  the  dignity  of  the  matter  the  highest  conceptions  of  the  human 
genius  are  found  to  be ;  we  shall,  I  think,  not  only  acknowledge 
the  sublimity,  but  the  divinity  of  that  of  the  Hebrews.  Nor  does 
this  greatness  and  elevation  consist  altogether  in  the  subjects  and 
sentiments,  which,  however  expressed,  would  yet  retain  some  part  at 
least  of  their  native  force  and  dignity,  but  the  manner  in  which 
these  lofty  ideas  are  arranged,  and  the  embellishments  of  description 
with  which  they  abound,  claim  our  warmest  admiration  :  and  this, 
whether  we  regard  the  adjuncts  or  circumstances,  which  are  selected 
with  so  much  judgement  as  uniformly  to  contribute  to  the  sublimity 
of  the  principal  subject ;  or  the  amplitude  of  that  imagery,  which 
represents  objects  the  most  remote  from  human  apprehension  in 
such  enchanting  colours,  that,  although  debased  by  human  painting, 
they  still  retain  their  genuine  sanctity  and  excellence.  Since,  there- 
fore, the  sublimity  of  the  sacred  poets  has  been  already  exemplified 
in  a  variety  of  instances,  it  will  probably  be  sufficient,  in  addition  t® 
these,  to  produce  a  few  examples  as  illustrations  of  these  remarks, 
chiefly  taken  from  those  parts  of  Scripture,  in  which  a  delineation 
of  the  Divine  Majesty  is  attempted. 

In  the  first  place  then  let  me  recal  to  your  remembrance  the  so- 
lemnity and  magnificence  with  which  the  power  of  God  in  the  crea- 
tion of  the  universe,  is  depicted.  And  here,  I  cannot  possibly  over- 
look that  passage  of  the  sacred  historian,  which  has  been  so  fre- 
quently commended,  in  which  the  importance  of  the  circumstance 
and  the  greatness  of  the  idea  (the  human  mind  cannot  indeed  well 
conceive  a  greater)  is  no  less  remarkable  than  the  expressive  brevity 


LECT.  XVL  SUBLIMITY  OF  SENTIMENT.  131 

and  simplicity  of  the  language  : — "  And  God  said,  Let  there  be  light, 
and  there  was  light."1  The  more  words  you  would  accumulate  up- 
on this  thought,  the  more  you  would  detract  from  the  sublimity  of  it : 
for  the  understanding  quickly  comprehends  the  Divine  power  from 
the  effect,  and  perhaps  most  completely,  when  it  is  not  attempted  to 
be  explained ;  the  perception  in  that  case  is  the  more  vivid,  inas- 
much as  it  seems  to  proceed  from  the  proper  action  and  energy  of 
the  mind  itself.  The  prophets  have  also  depicted  the  same  concep- 
tion in  poetical  language,  and  with  no  less  force  and  magnificence 
of  expression.  The  whole  creation  is  summoned  forth  to  celebrate 
the  praise  of  the  Almighty  : 

"  Laudent  nomen  lehovae ; 

"  Nam  ille  iussit,  et  creatae  sunt."2 

And  in  another  place  : 

"  Nam  ille  dixit,  et  fuit ; 
"  Ille  iussit,  et  constitit."3 

The  same  subject  is  frequently  treated  more  diffusely,  many  circum- 
stances being  added,  and  a  variety  of  imagery  introduced  for  the 
purpose  of  illustration.  Whether  this  be  executed  in  a  manner  suit- 
able to  the  greatness  and  dignity  of  the  subject,  may  be  easily  deter-, 
mined  by  a  few  examples  : 

"  Ubinam  fuisti  cum  fundarem  terrain  ? 

"  Indica,  si  intelligentia  polles. 

"  Quis  disposuit  mensuras  eius,  quandoquidem  nosti; 

'•'  Aut  quis  super  earn  extendit  lineam  ? 

"  Quonam  demersae  incumbunt  bases  eius ; 

"  Aut  quis  posuit  lapidem  eius  angularem  ? 

"  Quum  simul  ovarent  stellae  matutinae  ; 

"  Unaque  clangerent  omnes  filii  Dei, 

"  Et  foribus  occlusit  mare, 

"  Cum  erumperet,  ex  utero  exiret : 

"  Cum  involverem  illud  indumento  nubis, 

"  Et  fascia  densae  caliginis  : 

"  Et  diffringerem  illi  decretum  alveum, 

"  Poneremque  repagula  et  valvas ; 

"  Diceremque,  hue  usque  veni,  nee  progreditor ; 

"  Ethic  obstaculum  estotuorum  fluctuum  superbiae."4 

"  Quis  mensus  est  pugillo  suo  aquas  ; 

"  Et  coelos  palrna  aptavit ; 

"  Et  comprehendit  triente  pulverem  terrae  ? 

"  Et  ponderavit  trutina  montes, 

i  Gen.  i.  3.      2  PSAL.  cxlviii.  5.      3  PBAL.  xxxiii.  9.      4  JOB  xxxviii.  4—11. 


132  SUBLIMITY  OF  SENTIMENT.         L.ECT.  XVI. 

"  Et  colles  bilance  ? 

"  Attollite  in  sublime  vestros  oculos, 

"  Et  contemplamini  quis  creavit  ista  : 

"  Qui  educit  numero  exercitum  eorum, 

"  Eaque  omnia  nominatim  appellat ; 

"  Prae  magnitudine  virium  et  robore  potentiae,  ne  unum  deest."5(A) 

In  these  examples,  the  power  and  wisdom  of  the  Deity,  as  de- 
monstrated in  the  constitution  and  government  of  the  natural  world, 
you  see  have  suggested  a  variety  of  circumstances,  a  splendid  as- 
semblage of  imagery,  of  which  it  is  a  sufficient  commendation  to  say, 
the  whole  is  not  unworthy  the  greatness  of  the  subject.  The  case 
is,  however,  materially  different,  when  the  attributes  of  God  are  con- 
sidered in  themselves  simply  and  abstractedly,  with  no  illustration  or 
amplification  from  their  operations  and  effects.  Here  the  human 
mind  is  absorbed,  overwhelmed  as  it  were  in  a  boundless  vortex,  and 
studies  in  vain  for  an  expedient  to  extricate  itself.  But  the  great- 
ness of  the  subject  may  be  justly  estimated  by  its  difficulty  ;  and 
while  the  imagination  labours  to  comprehend  what  is  beyond  its 
powers,  this  very  labour  itself,  and  these  ineffectual  endeavours,  suf- 
ficiently demonstrate  the  immensity  and  sublimity  of  the  object. 
On  this  account  the  following  passage  is  truly  sublime.  Here  the 
mind  seems  to  exert  its  utmost  faculties  in  vain  to  grasp  an  object, 
whose  unparalleled  magnitude  mocks  its  feeble  endeavours ;  and  to 
this  end  it  employs  the  grandest  imagery  that  universal  nature  can 
suggest,  and  yet  this  imagery,  however  great,  proves  totally  inade- 
quate to  the  purpose  : 

"  O  lehova,  ad  coelos  pertingit  benignitas  tua  ; 

"  Veritas  tua,  usque  ad  nubes  : 

"  lustitia  tua  instar  montium  validorum; 

"  ludicia  tua  Abyssus  magna  !"6 

But  nothing  of  this  kind  is  nobler  or  more  majestic,  than  when  a  de- 
scription is  carried  on  by  a  kind  of  continued  negation  ;  when  a 
number  of  great  and  sublime  ideas  are  collected,  which,  on  a  com- 
parison with  the  object,  are  found  infinitely  inferior  and  inadequate. 
Thus  the  boundaries  are  gradually  extended  on  every  side,  and  at 
length  totally  removed  ;  the  mind  is  insensibly  led  on  towards  infini- 
ty, and  is  struck  with  inexpressible  admiration,  with  a  pleasing  awe, 
when  it  first  finds  itself  expatiating  in  that  immense  expanse. 
There  are  many  such  examples  in  the  sacred  poetry,  one  or  two  of 
which  will  probably  enable  you  to  recollect  the  rest. 

5  ISAI.  xl.  12  and  26.  6  PSAL.  xxxvi.  6,  7. 


.  XVI.  SUBLIMITY  OF  SENTIMENT.  133 

"  Nuniquid  Dei  intima  pervestigabis  ? 

"  An  invenies  etiam  perfectionem  omnipotentis  ? 

"  Altitudines  coelorum  !   quid  ages  ? 

"  Oreo  profundior ;  quid  cognosces  ! 

"  Mensura  eius  terra  longior, 

"Etlatior  est  mari."? 

"  Quo  discedara  a  spiritu  tuo ; 

"  Et  quo  a  facie  tua  fugiam  ? 

"  Si  ascendam  coelos,  ibi  tu ; 

"  Et  in  orco  cubem,  ecce  te  ! 

"  Fugam  capiam  auroram  versus ; 

"  Habitem  in  extremitate  maris  occidui : 

"  Etiam  illic  manus  tua  ducet  me  ; 

"  Et  apprehenderet  me  dextera  tua."8(B) 

Here  we  find  the  idea  of  jnfinity  perfectly  expressed,  though  it  he 
perhaps  the  most  difficult  of  all  ideas  to  impress  upon  the  mind  :  for 
when  simply  and  abstractedly  mentioned,  without  the  assistance  and 
illustration  of  any  circumstances  whatever,  it  almost  wholly  evades 
the  power  of  the  human  understanding.  The  sacred  writers  have, 
therefore,  recourse  to  description,  amplification,  and  imagery,  by 
which  they  give  substance  and  solidity  to  what  is  in  itself  a  subtile 
and  unsubstantial  phantom  ;  and  render  an  ideal  shadow  the  object 
of  our  senses.  They  conduct  us  through  all  the  dimensions  of 
space,  length,  breadth,  and  height :  these  they  do  not  describe  in 
general  or  indefinite  terms ;  they  apply  to  them  an  actual  line  and 
measure,  and  that  the  most  extensive  which  all  nature  can  supply,  or 
which  the  mind  is  indeed  able  to  comprehend.  When  the  intellect 
is  carried  beyond  these  limits,  there  is  nothing  substantial  upon 
which  it  can  rest ;  it  wanders  through  every  part,  and  when  it  has 
compassed  the  boundaries  of  creation,  it  imperceptibly  glides  into 
the  void  of  infinity  :  whose  vast  and  formless  extent,  when  displayed 
to  the  mind  of  man  in  the  forcible  manner  so  happily  attained  by  the 
Hebrew  writers,  impresses  it  with  the  sublimest  and  most  awful  sen- 
sations, and  fills  it  with  a  mixture  of  admiration  and  terror. 

That  more  vehement  species  of  negation  or  affirmation,  which 
assumes  the  confident  form  of  interrogation,  is  admirably  calculated 
to  impress  the  mind  with  a  very  forcible  idea  of  Div  ine  power.  This 
also  frequently  occurs  in  the  sacred  poetry : 

"  Hoc  est  decretum  de  omni  terra  consilium, 

"  Et  haec  est  manus  extensa  in  omnes  gentes  : 

7  JOB  xi.  7—9,  8  PSAL.  cxxxix.  7— 10* 


134  SUBLIMITY  OF  SENTIMENT.  LfiCT.  XVI. 

"  Nam  lehova  exercituum  decrevit,  et  quis  irritum  faciet  ? 
"  Et  ipsius  est  manus  quae  extenditur,  et.  quis  earn  avertet?"9 

"  An.  ille  dixit,  et  non  faciet  ? 

"  An  locutus  est,  et  non  effectum  dabit  ?"1° 

Nor  is  that  ironical  kind  of  concession,  which  is  sometimes  put  into 
the  mouth  of  the  Supreme  Being,  less  energetic ;  the  following  pas- 
sage is  an  admirable  instance  : 

"  Orna  te,  age,  magnificentia  et  celsitudine  ; 

"  Et  indue  maiestatem  et  gloriam  : 

"  Effunde  quaquaversum  aestus  irae  tuae ; 

"  Et  aspectu  tuo  omnem  elatum,  deprime, 

"  Aspice  omnem  elatum,  prosterne  eum ; 

"  Et  contere  impios  in  vestigio  suo : 

"  Obrue  eos  in  pulvere  pariter ; 

"  Involve  eorum  vultus,  et  in  obscurum  demerge. 

"  Turn  etiam  ego  tibi  confitebor  ; 

"  Cum  tibi  salutem  praestiterit  dextera  tua."U 

When  the  Divine  Omnipotence  is  opposed  to  human  infirmity,  the 
one  is  proportion  ably  magnified  as  the  other  is  diminished  by  the 
contrast.  The  monstrous  absurdity  of  a  comparison  between  things 
extremely  unequal,  the  more  forcibly  serves  to  demonstrate  that  ine- 
quality, and  sets  them  at  an  infinite  distance  from  each  other. 

Since,  however,  the  sacred  poets  were  under  the  necessity  of 
speaking  of  God  in  a  manner  adapted  to  human  conceptions,  and  of 
attributing  to  him  the  actions,  the  passions,  the  faculties  of  man  ; 
how  can  they  be  supposed  ever  to  have  depicted  the  Divine  Majesty 
in  terms  at  all  becoming  the  greatness  of  the  subject  ?  And  are  they 
not  in  this  case  more  likely  to  disgrace  and  degrade  it  ?  May  not 
that  censure  be  applied  to  them,  which  Longinus  so  deservedly  ap- 
plies to  Homer,  that  he  turned  his  gods  into  men,  and  even  debased 
them  beneath  the  standard  of  humanity  ?— -  The  case  is,  however, 
materially  different :  Homer,  and  the  other  heathen  poets,  relate 
facts  of  their  deities,  which,  though  impious  and  absurd,  when  lite- 
rally understood,  are  scarcely,  or  at  all  intelligible  in  an  allegoric 
sense,  and  can  by  no  means  be  reduced  to  an  interpretation  strictly 
figurative.12  On  the  contrary,  in  the  delineation  of  the  Divine  na- 
ture, the  sacred  poets  do  indeed,  in  conformity  to  the  weakness  of 
the  human  understanding,  employ  terrestrial  imagery ;  but  it  is  in 
such  a  manner,  that  the  attributes  which  are  borrowed  from  human 

9  ISAI.  xiv.  26,  27.  10  NUMB,  xxiii.  19.  n  JOB  xl.  10—14. 

12  gee  FABRIC.  Biblioth.  Grec.  L.  v.  c.  26.    Vol.  viii.  p.  526. 


.  XVI.  SUBLIMITY  OF  SENTIMENT.  135 

nature  and  human  action,  can  never  in  a  literal  sense  be  applied  to 
the  Divinity.  The  understanding  is  continually  referred  from  the 
shadow  to  the  reality ;  nor  can  it  rest  satisfied  with  the  bare  literal 
application,  but  is  naturally  directed  to  investigate  that  quality  in  the 
Divine  nature,  which  appears  to  be  analogous  to  the  image.  This, 
if  I  am  not  mistaken,  will  supply  us  with  a  reason  not  very  obvious, 
of  a  very  observable  effect  in  the  Hebrew  writings,  namely,  why, 
among  those  sensible  images  that  are  applied  to  the  Deity,  those 
principally,  which  in  a  literal  sense  would  seem  most  remote  from 
the  object,  and  most  unworthy  of  the  Divine  Majesty,  are  neverthe- 
less, when  used  metaphorically,  or  in  the  way  of  comparison,  by  far 
the  most  sublime.  That  imagery,  for  instance,  which  is  taken  from 
the  parts  and  members  of  the  human  body,  is  found  to  be  much  no- 
bler and  more  magnificent  in  its  effect,  than  that  which  is  taken 
from  the  passions  of  the  mind ;  and  that,  which  is  taken  from  the 
animal  creation,  frequently  exceeds  in  sublimity  that  which  the  na- 
ture of  man  has  suggested.  For  such  is  our  ignorance  and  blind- 
ness in  contemplating  the  Divine  nature,  that  we  can  by  no  means 
attain  to  a  simple  and  pure  idea  of  it :  we  necessarily  mingle  some- 
thing of  the  human  with  the  divine  :  the  grosser  animal  properties, 
therefore,  we  easily  distinguish  and  separate,  but  it  is  with  the  ut- 
most difficulty  that  we  can  preserve  the  rational,  and  even  some  of 
the  properties  of  the  sensitive,  soul  perfectly  distinct.  Hence  it  is, 
that  in  those  figurative  expressions  derived  from  the  nobler  and  more 
excellent  qualities  of  human  nature,  when  applied  to  the  Almighty, 
we  frequently  acquiesce,  as  if  they  were  in  strict  literal  propriety  to 
be  attributed  to  him  :  on  the  contrary,  our  understanding  immedi- 
ately rejects  the  literal  sense  of  those  which  seem  quite  inconsistent 
with  the  Divine  Being,  and  derived  from  an  ignoble  source :  and, 
while  it  pursues  the  analogy,  it  constantly  rises  to  a  contemplation, 
which,  though  obscure,  is  yet  grand  and  magnificent.  Let  us  ob- 
serve, whether  this  observation  will  apply  to  the  following  passages, 
in  which  the  psalmist  ascribes  to  God  the  resentment  commonly  ex- 
perienced by  a  human  creature  for  an  injury  unexpectedly  received  : 
there  appears  in  the  image  nothing  to  excite  our  admiration,  noth- 
ing particularly  sublime : 

"  Audivit  Deus,  et  ira  exarsit ; 

"  Et  Israelmncum  summo  fastidio  reiecit."13 
But  when,  a  little  after,  the  same  subject  is  depicted  in  figurative 

13  PSAL.  Ixxviii.  59. 


136  SUBLIMITY  OP  SENTIMENT.  L.ECT.  XVI, 

terms,  derived  from  much  grosser  objects,  and  applied  in  a  still  more 
daring  manner,  nothing  can  be  more  sublime  : 

"  Turn  expergefactus  est  Dominus  veluti  ex  somno ; 

"  Tanquam  Athleta  prae  vino  in  clamorem  erumpens."14 

On  the  same  principle  the  sublimity  of  those  passages  is  founded,  in 
which  the  image  is  taken  from  the  roaring  of  a  lion,  the  clamour  of 
rustic  labourers,  and  the  rage  of  wild  beasts  : 

"  Ex  alto  rugiet  lehova ; 
"  Et  ex  sacrosancto  habitaculo  edet  vocem  : 
"  Horrendura  rugiet  super  sedem  suam ; 
"  Edet  celeusma  sicut  calcantes  uvas."l5 

"  Et  ero  illis  instar  leonis  ; 

"  Sicut  pardus  iuxta  viam  insidiabor ; 

"  Occurram  illis  ut  ursa  orbata, 

"  Et  discerpam  eorum  praecordia."16 

From  ideas,  which  in  themselves  appear  coarse,  unsuitable,  and  to- 
tally unworthy  of  so  great  an  object,  the  mind  naturally  recedes,  and 
passes  suddenly  to  the  contemplation  of  the  object  itself,  and  of  its 
inherent  magnitude  and  importance. 

14  PSAL.  Ixxviii.  65.  15  JER.  xxv.  30.  16  Hos.  xlii.  7,  8. 


LECTURE  XVII. 


OF    THE    SUBLIME    OF    PASSION. 

Sublimity  of  sentiment  as  arising  from  the  vehement  affections  of  the  mind — What  is  common- 
ly called  enthusiasm  is  the  natural  effect  of  passion  :  the  true  enthusiasm  arises  from  the 
impulse  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  and  is  peculiar  to  the  sacred  poets — The  principal  force  of  poe- 
try is  displayed  in  the  expression  of  passion  :  in  exciting  the  passions  poetry  best  achioves 
its  purpose,  whether  it  be  utility  or  pleasure — How  the  passions  are  excited  to  the  purpose 
of  utility  ;  how  to  that  of  pleasure — The  difference  and  connexion*  between  the  pathetic  and 
the  sublime — That  sublimity,  which  in  the  sacred  poetry  proceeds  from  the  imitation  of  the 
passions  of  admiration,  of  joy,  indignation, -grief,  and  terror  ;  illustrated  by  examples. 

WE  have  agreed  with  Longinus,  that  a  violent  agitation  of  the 
mind,  or  impetuosity  of  passion,  constitutes  another  source  of  the 
sublime  :  he  calls  it  "  the  vehemence  and  enthusiasm  of  passion." 
It  will  be  proper,  therefore,  in  the  next  place,  to  consider  the  na- 
ture of  this  enthusiasm  ;  the  principles  on  which  the  power  of  ex- 
citing or  of  imitating  the  passions  in  poetry  may  be  supposed  to  de- 
pend ;  and  what  affinity  subsists  between  passion  and  sublimity. 

The  language  of  poetry  I  have  more  than  once  described  as  the 
effect  of  mental  emotion.  Poetry  itself  is  indebted  for  its  origin, 
character,  complexion,  emphasis,  and  application,  to  the  effects 
which  are  produced  upon  the  mind  and  body,  upon  the  imagination, 
the  senses,  the  voice,  and  respiration,  by  the  agitation  of  passion. 
Every  affection  of  the  human  soul,  while  it  rages  with  violence,  is  a 
momentary  phrenzy.  When  therefore  a  poet  is  able  by  the  force  of 
genius,  or  rather  of  imagination,  to  conceive  any  emotion  of  the 
mind  so  perfectly  as  to  transfer  to  his  own  feelings  the  instinctive 
passion  of  another,  and,  agreeably  to  the  nature  of  the  subject,  to 
express  it  in  all  its  vigour,  such  a  one,  according  to  a  common  mode 
of  speaking,  may  be  said  to  possess  the  true  poetic  enthusiasm,1  or, 
as  the  ancients  would  have  expressed  it,  "  to  be  inspired  ;  full  of  the 
God :"  not  however  implying,  that  their  ardour  of  mind  was  impart- 

1  ARISTOTLE  expresses  it  navixov  (insane,)  PLATO  txygora  (out  of  their  com- 
mon senses.)  tv&eov  (inspired  by  a  God,)  tv&ovfliatovra  (enthusiastic.) 

18 


138  THE  SUBLIME  OF  PASSION.  L.ECT.  XVII. 

ed  by  the  gods,  but  that  this  ecstatic  impulse  became  the  God  of  the 
moment.2 

This  species  of  enthusiasm  I  should  distinguish  by  the  term  nat- 
ural, were  it  not  that  I  should  seem  to  connect  things  which  are  re- 
ally different  and  repugnant  to  each  other ;  the  true  and  genuine 
enthusiasm,  that  which  alone  is  deserving  of  the  name,  that  I  mean 
with  which  the  sublimer  poetry  of  the  Hebrews,  and  particularly  the 
prophetic,  is  animated,  is  certainly  widely  different  in  its  nature,  and 
boasts  a  much  higher  origin. 

As  poetry,  however,  derives  its  very  existence  from  the  more  ve- 
hement emotions  of  the  mind,  so  its  greatest  energy  is  displayed  in 
the  expression  of  them ;  and  by  exciting  the  passions  it  more  effec- 
tually attains  its  end. 

Poetry  is  said  to  consist  in  imitation  :  whatever  the  human  mind 
is  able  to  conceive,  it  is  the  province  of  poetry  to  imitate  ;  things, 
places,  appearances  natural  and  artificial,  actions,  passions,  manners 
and  customs  ;  and  since  the  human  intellect  is  naturally  delighted 
with  every  species  of  imitation,  that  species  in  particular,  which  ex- 
hibits its  own  image,  which  displays  and  depicts  those  impulses,  in- 
flections, perturbations,  and  secret  emotions,  which  it  perceives  and 
knows  in  itself,  can  scarcely  fail  to  astonish  and  to  delight  above  ev- 
ery other.  The  delicacy  and  difficulty  of  this  kind  of  imitation  are 
among  its  principal  commendations  ;  for  to  effect  that  which  appears 
almost  impossible,  naturally  excites  our  admiration.  The  under- 
standing slowly  perceives  the  accuracy  of  the  description  in  all  oth- 
er subjects,  and  their  agreement  to  their  archetypes,  as  being  oblig- 
ed to  compare  them  by  the  aid  and  through  the  uncertain  medium, 
f  as  it  were,  of  the  memory  :  but  when  a  passion  is  expressed,  the  ob- 
\  ject  is  clear  and  distinct  at  once  ;  the  mind  is  immediately  conscious 
of  itself  and  its  own  emotions ;  it  feels  and  suffers  in  itself  a  sensa- 
\  tion,  either  the  same  or  similar  to  that  which  is  described.  Hence 
\  that  sublimity,  which  arises  from  the  vehement  agitation  of  the  pas- 
sions, and  the  imitation  of  them,  possesses  a  superior  influence  over 
the  human  mind ;  whatever  is  exhibited  to  it  from  without,  may  well 
be  supposed  to  move  and  agitate  it  less  than  what  it  internally  per- 
ceives, of  the  magnitude  and  force  of  which  it  is  previously  con- 
scious. 

And  as  the  imitation  or  delineation  of  the  passions  is  the  most 

2  Nisus  ait,  Dine  hunc  ardorem  mentibus  addunt, 
Euryale  ?  an  sua  cuique  deus  fit  dira  cupido  ?     ./Eneid.  ix.  184. 


LECT.  XVII.  THE  SUBLIME  OF  PASSION.  139 

perfect  production  of  poetry,  so  by  exciting  them  it  most  completely 
effects  its  purpose.  The  intent  of  poetry  is  to  profit  while  it  enter- 
tains us  ,  and  the  agitation  of  the  passions,  by  the  force  of  imitation, 
is  in  the  highest  degree  both  useful  and  pleasant. 

This  method  of  exciting  the  passions  is,  in  the  first  place,  useful, 
when  properly  and  lawfully  exercised ;  that  is,  when  these  passions 
are  directed  to  their  proper  end,  and  rendered  subservient  to  the  dic- 
tates of  nature  and  truth ;  when  an  aversion  to  evil,  and  a  love  of 
goodness  is  excited ;  and  if  the  poet  deviate  on  any  occasion  from 
this  great  end  and  aim,  he  is  guilty  of  a  most  scandalous  abuse  and 
perversion  of  his  art.  For  the  passions  and  affections  are  the  ele- 
ments and  principles  of  human  action  ;  they  are  all  in  themselves 
good,  useful,  and  virtuous  ;  and,  when  fairly  and  naturally  employed, 
not  only  lead  to  useful  ends  and  purposes,  but  actually  prompt  and 
stimulate  to  virtue.  It  is  the  office  of  poetry  to  incite,  to  direct,  to 
temper  the  passions,  and  not  to  extinguish  them.  It  professes  to 
exercise,  to  amend,  to  discipline  the  affections  :  it  is  this  which  is 
strictly  meant  by  Aristotle,  when  he  speaks  of  the  pruning  of  the 
passions,  though  certain  commentators  have  strangely  perverted  his 
meaning. 

But  this  operation  on  the  passions  is  also  more  immediately  use- 
ful, because  it  is  productive  of  pleasure.  Every  emotion  of  the 
mind,  (not  excepting  even  those  which  in  themselves  are  allied  to 
pain)  when  excited  through  the  agency  of  the  imitative  arts,  is  ever 
accompanied  with  an  exquisite  sensation  of  pleasure.  This  arises 
partly  from  the  contemplation  of  the  imitation  itself;  partly  from  the 
consciousness  of  our  own  felicity,  when  compared  with  the  miseries 
of  others  ;  but  principally  from  the  moral  sense.  Nature  has  endu- 
ed man  with  a  certain  social  and  generous  spirit ;  and  commands 
hjm  not  to  confine  his  cares  to  himself  alone,  but  to  extend  them  to 
all  his  fellow  creatures  ;  to  look  upon  nothing  which  relates  to  man- 
kind as  foreign  to  himself.  Thus  "  to  rejoice  with  them  that  do  re- 
joice, and  to  weep  with  them  that  weep  ;"  to  love  and  to  respect  pie- 
ty and  benevolence  ;  to  cherish  and  retain  an  indignant  hatred  of 
cruelty  and  injustice ;  that  is,  to  obey  the  dictates  of  nature ;  is  right, 
is  honest,  is  becoming,  is  pleasant. 

The  sublime  and  the  pathetic  are  intrinsically  very  different ;  and 
yet  have  in  some  respects  a  kind  of  affinity  or  connexion.  The  pa- 
thetic includes  the  passions  which  we  feel,  and  those  which  we  ex- 
cite. Some  passions  may  be  expressed  without  any  thing  of  the 


140  THE  SUBLIME  OF  PASSION.  L.ECT.  XVII. 


sublime ;  the  sublime  also  may  exist,  where  no  passion  is  directly 
expressed  ;  there  is  however  no  sublimity  where  no  passion  is  excit- 
ed. That  sensation  of  sublimity,  which  arises  from  the  greatness  of 
the  thoughts  and  imagery,  has  admiration  for  its  basis,  and  that  for 
the  most  part  connected  with  joy,  love,  hatred,  or  fear  ;  and  this  I 
think  is  evident  from  the  instances  which  were  so  lately  under  our 
consideration. 

How  much  the  sacred  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  excels  in  exciting 
the  passions,  and  in  directing  them  to  their  noblest  end  and  aim  ; 
how  it  exercises  them  upon  their  proper  objects ;  how  it  strikes  and 
fires  the  admiration  by  the  contemplation  of  the  Divine  Majesty  ; 
and,  forcing  the  affections  of  love,  hope,  and  joy,  from  unworthy 
and  terrestrial  objects,  elevates  them  to  the  pursuit  of  the  supreme 
good  :  How  it  also  stimulates  those  of  grief,  hatred,  and  fear,  which 
are  usually  employed  upon  the  trifling  miseries  of  this  life  to  the  ab- 
horrence of  the  supreme  evil,  is  a  subject  which  at  present  wants  no 
illustration,  and  which,  though  not  unconnected  with  sublimity  in  a 
general  view,  would  be  improperly  introduced  in  this  place.  For  we 
are  not  at  present  treating  of  the  general  effects  of  sublimity  on  the 
passions ;  but  of  that  species  of  the  sublime  which  proceeds  from  ve- 
hement emotions  of  the  mind,  and  from  the  imitation  or  representa- 
tion of  passion. 

Here  indeed  a  spacious  field  presents  itself  to  our  view  :  for  by 
far  the  greater  part  of  the  sacred  poetry  is  little  else  than  a  continu- 
ed imitation  of  the  different  passions.  What  in  reality  forms  the 
substance  and  subject  of  most  of  these  poems  but  the  passion  of  ad- 
miration, excited  by  the  consideration  of  the  Divine  power  and  maj- 
esty ;  the  passion  of  joy,  from  the  sense  of  the  Divine  favour,  and 
the  prosperous  issue  of  events  ;  the  passion  of  resentment  and  indig- 
nation against  the  contemners  of  God  ;  of  grief,  from  the  conscious- 
ness of  sin  ;  and  terror,  from  the  apprehension  of  the  Divine  judge- 
ments? Of  all  these,  and  if  there  be  any  emotions  of  the  mind  be- 
yond these,  exquisite  examples  may  be  found  in  the  book  of  Job,  in 
the  Psalms,  in  the  Canticles,  and  in  every  part  of  the  prophetic 
writings.  On  this  account  my  principal  difficulty  will  not  be  the  se- 
lection of  excellent  and  proper  instances,  but  the  explaining  of  those 
which  spontaneously  occur,  without  a  considerable  diminution  of 
their  intrinsic  sublimity. (A) 

Admiration,  as  it  is  ever  the  concomitant,  so  it  is  frequently  the 
efficient  cause  of  sublimity.  It  produces  great  and  magnificent  con- 


LECT.  XVII.  THE  SUBLIME  OF  PASSION.  141 

ceptions  and  sentiments,  and  expresses  them  in  language  bold  and 
elevated,  in  sentences  concise,  abrupt,  and  energetic. 
"  lehova  regnat ;  contremiscant  populi : 
"  Cherubis  insidet ;  comrnoveatur  tellus."3 

"  Vox  lehovae  super  aquas  ; 

"  Deus  gloriae  intonat ; 

"  lehova  super  aquas  validas. 

"  Vox  lehovae  potens  ; 

"  Vox  lehovae  plena  majestatis."4 

"  Quis  tui  similis  inter  Deos,  lehova  ! 
"  Quis  tui  similis,  verendus  sanctitate  ! 
"  Terribilis  laudum,  faciens  mirabilia  ! 
"  Extendisti  dextram,  absorbet  eostellus."5 

Joy  is  more  elevated,  and  exults  in  a  bolder  strain.  It  produces 
great  sentiments  and  conceptions ;  seizes  upon  the  most  splendid 
imagery,  and  adorns  it  with  the  most  animated  language ;  nor  does 
it  hesitate  to  risk  the  most  daring  and  unusual  figures.  In  the  Song 
of  Moses,  ifTlhe  Thanksgiving  of  Deborah  and  Barak,  what  sublimi- 
ty do  we  find,  in  sentiment,  in  language,  in  the  general  turn  of  the 
expression  !  But  nothing  can  excel  in  this  respect  that  noble  exulta- 
tion of  universal  nature  in  the  Psalm  which  has  been  so  often  com- 
mended, where  the  whole  animated  and  inanimate  creation  unite  in 
the  praises  of  their  Maker.  Poetry  here  seems  to  assume  the  high- 
est tone  of  triumph  and  exultation,  and  to  revel,  if  I  may  so  express 
myself,  in  all  the  extravagance  of  joy  : 

"  Dicite,  regnat  Deus  omnipotent  ; 
"  Dicite  populis,  ipse  lehova 
"  Posuit  stabilis  moenia  mundi, 
"  Rerum  validas  torquet  habenas. 
"  Coeli  exultent ;  concinat  aether ; 
"  Resonet  cantu  conscia  tellus  ; 
"  Resonent  sylvae  ;  resonent  montes  ; 
"  Geminent  palmis  flumina  plausum ; 
"  Fremitu  laeto  reboet  pontus  : 
11  Psallite,  clangite,  quaeque  patentes 
u  Colitis  terras,  quaeque  profundum. 
"  Advenit,  advenit  ipse  lehova, 
"  Regat  ut  populos  legibus  aequis  ; 
"  Totum  nurnine  temperet  orbem."6 

Nothing,  however,  can  be  greater  or  more  magnificent  than  the 
representation  of  anger  and  indignation,  particularly  when  the  di- 

(  PSAL.  xcix.  1.  4  PSAL.  xxix.  3,  4.  5  EXOD.  xv.  11,  12. 

6  PSAL.  xcvi.  10—13,  and  xcviii.  7—9. 


mi;  SUBLIME  OF  PASSION.  LECT.  XVII. 


vine  wratli  is  displayed.  Of  this  the  whole  of  the  prophetic  song  of 
Moses  affords  an  incomparable  specimen.  I  have  formerly  produc- 
ed from  it  some  instances  of  a  different  kind  ;  nor  ought  the  follow- 
ing to  be  denied  a  place  in  these  L<T,tun-s. 

"  N;im  inanura  meain  ad  coeloH  attollo 
"  Et .dim,  ul,  ro-o  jn  ii.cl.rrtiiiiii  vivo, 
"  Ita  acuain  gladii  inoi  f'ulgur, 
"  Et  in. inn,:  rnea  ;impii-t  ;irui;i.  iiulicii  ; 
"  HostilmM  iiMiiK  iilt.iojKim  rcddam, 
"  Kisijin-  «|ui  tin-  nd.-iuii)  rc|nMiil;iin 
"  Incbriabo  Hagittas  mens  Hanguinn, 
"  Et  gladiuH  innuH  dovorabit  carnes, 
"  Sanguine  confossorum  captorumque, 
"  De  capite  capillato  iniinicorum."7 

Nor  is  Isaiah  less  daring  on  a  similar  subject : 

"  Nam  dies  ultionis  in  cnrde  meo  ont, 
"  Et  annus  quo  moos  rodirnam  v«'nit 
"  Et  circumspexi,  noque  erat  adint<»r , 
"  Et  obstupui,  neque  enirn  orat  BUHtentator  : 

'Turn  ruihi  salutorn  prae8t.itit  brachium  ineum, 

!  Et  indignatio  mea  ipsa  rno  8UHt.erit.ivit 
Et  conculcavi  populos  in  ira  mea, 

'  Et  in  aestu  rneo  ebrios  ot  attonitos  reddidi, 

'  Et  caedern  eorum  derivavi  in  terram."8(B) 

The  display  of  the  fury  and  threats  of  the  enemy,  by  which  MOM-. 
finely  exaggerates  the  horror  of  their  unexpected  ruin,  is  also  won- 
derfully sublime : 

"  Dixerat  hoatis,  persequar,  adsoquar  ; 
"  Dividarn  spolia,  oxHaturabitur  anirna  mea  ; 
"  Stringam  gladium,  exscindet  oos  rnanus  mea: 
"  Spiritu  tuo  flavJHti ;  operuit  eos  mare."9 

Grief  is  generally  abject  and  humble,  less  apt  to  assimilate  with 
the  sublime ;  but  when  it  becomes  excessive,  and  predominates  in 
the  mind,  it  rises  to  a  bolder  tone,  and  becomes  heated  to  fury  and 
madness.  We  have  a  fine  example  of  this  from  the  hand  of  Jere- 
miah, when  he  exaggerates  the  miseries  of  Sion  : 

"  Arcum  suurn  hostili  more  intendit ;  dextram  firmavit  velut  inimicus  ; 

"  In  teritoria  filiae  Sionis  iram  suam  instar  ignis  effudit."10 

But  nothing  of  this  kind  can  equal  the  grief  of  Job,  which  is  acute, 
vehement,  fervid  ;  always  in  the  deepest  afflictions  breathing  an  ani- 
mated and  lofty  strain ; 

7DEux.  xxxii.40— 42.    8  I8AI.  lxiii.  4— 6.      9  EXOD.  xv.  9,10.    10  LAM.  ii.  4. 


XVII.  THE  SUBLIME  OF  PASSION.  143 

"  Aeotuat  ingen* 
no  in  corde  pudor,  Juotu«,que,et  corwcia  virttw." 

"  Ira  eiuH  di^  t  hostili  rxlio  prcwequitur ; 

'•  D<5ntibu»  in  rne  infrendit, 

ti»  rneiui  acuit  contra  rrie  rjculo*  »uo«. 
jcen  «ua«  contra  rnt  dintendunt ; 
"  Maxilla*  mean  contumelious  p«;rcu»iunt  ; 
"  Pariter  super  irte  «ece  ex«atur 

>ngt.ricturn  m*  Deu»  inifjuo  tradidit, 

*Jtvit. 

"Tranqmlluaerarn,  et  rne  pen i tun  contrivit; 
"  Et  cenrice  prehenuarn  minut;xtirri  diffn-git; 
"  Ac  me  §ibi  pro  »copo  constituit. 
"  Corona  facia  invariant  rne  iaculatoreu  *iu» ; 
'   SuJcat  rene«  rneon.  nee  pareit : 
'•  EfFundit  in  terrarn  fol  rr:' 

-  Aliii)  cnper  alian  plagis  continuo  me  profligat ; 
"  Irnpetum  facit  in  rne  »icut  bellat/>r."H 

In  the  same  author,  with  what  rna^ruf  1  sublimity  are  «or- 

row  and  desperation  expressed  ! 

"  O  »i  bilance  mea  libretti r  calarnitas, 

"  JuMtaqne  trutina  rrK>le«  curnulati  mali  ! 

"  Saperat  iniq-r  -renau  aequori*  : 

"  Nee  temere  jn  i*;-vj.-r  r/«-mita  erumpen*  dolor. 

»nt  penitcu  imo  tela  \tutttnnl  nurninin 
-•'  Defiza  latere ;  rnoraa  lace  rant  viscera, 
"  Ae^narnque  lenta  tabe  Hpiriturn  haariant ; 
.que  terroren  acie  imrtmcta  ingrunnt. 
-dat  utinam  Rupplici*  precibn*  Detw! 
"  Efftindat  irae  fraena  tandem  vindici ; 

lanu  «r,luta,  liberoque  brachio, 
"  Adigat  trunilci  vim  contfcam  fulrnini*, 
"  Mifennnqiw  plagambiU^  interimat  uirnplici."J2 

The  wholo  fxx.-rn  of  Job  is  no  lens  excellent  in  the  expression 
and  excitation  of  terror,  as  the  example  just  now  quoted  sufficiently 
demonstrates.  To  this  commendation,  however,  the  prophetic  writ- 

';ern  to  have  the  fairest  claim  :  it  being  indeed  their  peculiar 
province  to  denounce  the  Divine  judgements  upon  guilty  nations.  Al- 
most  the  whole  book  of  Flzekiel  i-,  oc*>upied  with  this  passion  :  Isaiah 
is  also  excellent  in  this  respect,  although  he  be  in  general  the  har- 

r  of  joy  and  salvation.  The  following  terrific  denunciatian  i* 
directed  by  him  against  the  enemies  of  Jerusalem  : 

"  Eialate,  nam  propinqoatdie*  Jehovae  > 
::  Adveniet,  at  ab  omnipotente,  vaurtJtaa  ! 

ll  JOB  rri.  9—14.  W  Jo»  ri.  2,  3,  4,  8, 9. 


144  THE  SUBLIME  OF  PASSION.  L.ECT.  XVII. 

"  Idcirco  omnes  manus  solventur, 

"  Et  omne  cor  hominis  liquescet ; 

"  Et  consternati  angoribus,  et  cruciatibus  correpti, 

"  Instar  parturientis  dolebunt : 

"  Alter  alterum  attoniti  respicient ; 

"  Instar  flammarum  vultu  ardente. 

"  Ecce  dies  lehovae  advenit; 

"  Atrocitas,  et  excandescentia,  et  aestusirae  : 

"  Ut  redigat  terram  in  desolationem, 

"  Et  peccatores  eius  ex  ea  exscindat. 

"  Nam  stellae  coelorum,  et  eorum  sidera, 

"  Non  emittent  lucent  suam  ; 

"  Caligabit  sol  in  ortu  suo, 

"  Nee  splendorem  suum  efFundct  luna. 

"  Et  animadvertam  in  orbis  malitiam, 

"  Et  in  impiorum  crimina  ; 

"  Et  comprimam  arrogantium  fastus, 

"  Etsuperbiam  tyrannorum  deiiciam. 

"  Mortalem  reddam  obryzo  pretiosiorem, 

"  Et  hominem  auro  Ophirino. 

"  Propterea  coelos  faciam  contremiscere, 

"  Et  commovebitur  tellus  e  loco  suo  ; 

u  In  excandescentia  lehovae  exercituum ; 

"  Etin  die  irae  eius  exardescentis."13 

Jeremiah  is  scarcely  inferior,  though  perhaps  his  talents  are  better 
suited  in  common  to  the  exciting  of  the  softer  affections.  As  an 
example,  I  need  only  refer  to  that  remarkable  vision,  in  which  the 
impending  slaughter  and  destruction  of  Judea  is  exhibited  with  won- 
derful force  and  enthusiasm  : 

"  Viscera  mea  !  viscera  mea  !   praecordia  mihi  dolent ! 

"  Tumultuatur  intus  cor  meum ;  silere  non  possum  ; 

"  Nam  vocem  buccinae  audivisti,  o  anima  mea ;  clanfforem  belli ! 

"  Glades  super  cladem  proclamatur,  nam  devastata  est  omnis  haec  terra  : 

"  Subito  vastantur  tentoria  mea,  momento  mea  vela. 

"  Quousque  videbo  vexillum,  audiam  clangorem  buccinae  ! — 

"  Aspexi  terram,  ecce  autem  informis  est  et  vacua  ! 

"  Coelosque,  nee  lucent  amplius  !"14 

It  would  be  an  infinite  task  to  collect  and  specify  all  the  passages 
that  might  be  found  illustrative  of  this  subject :  and  probably  we 
shall  have  more  than  one  opportunity  of  discoursing  upon  these  and 
similar  topics,  when  we  come  to  consider  the  different  species  of  the 
Hebrew  poetry  :  upon  which,  after  requesting  your  candour  and  in- 
dulgence to  so  arduous  an  undertaking,  it  is  my  intention  to  enter 
at  our  next  meeting. 

13  ISAI.  xiii.  6—13.  14  JER.  iv.  19,  etc. 


PART  III. 

OF  THE  DIFFERENT  SPECIES  OF  POETRY  EXTANT  IN  THE 
WRITINGS  OF  THE  HEBREWS. 

OF  PROPHETIC  POETRT. 


LECTURE  XVIII, 


THE     WRITINGS     OF     THE     PROPHETS     ARE     IN     GENERAL     POETICAL. 

The  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  classed  according  to  its  different  characters  ;  this  mode  of  arrange- 
ment results  rather  from  the  nature  of  the  subject,  than  from  any  authority  of  the  Hebrews 
themselves  —  The  Prophetic  Poetry  —  The  writings  of  the  prophets  in  general  poetical  and 
metrical  —  The  opinion  of  the  modern  Jews  and  of  Jerome  on  this  point  refuted  —  In  the  books 
of  the  prophets  the  same  evidences  are  found  of  a  metrical  arrangement  as  in  the  poetical 
books  :  in  the  dialect,  the  style,  and  poetical  conformation  of  the  sentences  —  Obvious  in  re- 
spect to  the  two  former  circumstances  ;  the  latter  requires  a  more  minute  investigation,  and 
also  illustration  by  examples-4T  he  intimate  relation  between  poetry  and  prophecy  —  The 
college  of  prophets  ;  a  part  ofwhose  discipline  it  was  to  sing  hymns  to  the  different  in- 
struments :  and  this  exercise  was  called  prophecy  :  the  same  word,  therefore,  denotes  a 
prophet,  a  poet,  and  a  musician  —  Elisha,  when  about  to  pronounce  the  oracle  of  God,  orders 
a  minstrel  to  be  brought  to  him  —  Poetry  excellently  adapted  to  the  purpose  of  prophecy  —  A 
review  of  the  ru_pst  ancient  predictions  extant  in  the  historical  books,  which  are  proved  to  be 
truly  poetical.^ 

OF  the  general  nature  and  properties  of  the  Hebrew  poetry  I 
have  already  treated  :  diffusely  enough,  if  the  extent  of  the  disqui- 
sitions be  considered  ;  but  too  briefly,  I  fear,  and  too  imperfectly, 
if  respect  be  had  to  the  copiousness  and  importance  of  the  subject. 
My  original  design,  however,  extended  no  farther  than  to  notice  the 
most  remarkable  passages,  and  such  as  I  conceived  to  be  immediate- 
ly illustrative  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  Hebrew  style.  Even  these 
it  was  my  wish  and  intention  rather  to  point  out  and  recommend  to 
your  own  consideration,  than  minutely  to  investigate  and  explain, 
esteeming  it  my  province  rather  to  exhort  and  stimulate  to  these 
studies,  than  to  intrude  upon  this  audience  a  formal  plan  of  instruc- 
tion. It  would  be  superfluous,  I  am  persuaded,  to  remind  you,  that 
the  importance  of  the  subject  is  not  to  be  estimated  by  the  feeble- 
19 


146  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  LECT.  XVIII. 

ness  of  my  endeavours ;  and,  I  trust,  it  would  be  still  more  unne- 
cessary to  caution  you  against  a  hasty  acquiescence  in  any  interpreta- 
tion of  those  passages,  which  I  have  quoted,  much  less  in  my  own  : 
though  I  will  frankly  confess,  that  I  have  bestowed  no  small  degree 
of  labour  and  attention  upon  this  part  of  my  undertaking.  What 
remains  at  present,  is  to  distribute  into  its  different  classes  the  whole 
of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  and  to  mark  whatever  is  worthy  of  observa- 
tion in  each  species.  In  forming  this  arrangement  it  will  hardly 
be  expected  that  I  should  uniformly  proceed  according  to  the  testi- 
mony of  the  Hebrews,  or  on  all  occasions  confirm  the  propriety  of 
my  classification  by  their  authority ;  since  it  is  plain  that  they  were 
but  little  versed  in  these  nice  and  artificial  distinctions.  It  will  be 
sufficient  for  our  purpose ;  that  is,  it  will  be  sufficient  for  the  accu- 
rate explanation  of  the  different  characters  of  the  Hebrew  poetry, 
if  I  demonstrate  that  these  characters  are  stamped  by  the  hand  of 
nature,  and  that  they  are  displayed  either  in  the  subject  itself,  the 
disposition  of  its  constituent  parts,  the  diversity  of  style,  or  in  the 
general  form  and  arrangement  of  the  poem. 

The  first  rank  I  assign  to  the  PROPHETIC,  or  that  species  of  po- 
etry which  is  found  to  pervade  the  predictions  of  the  prophets,  as 
well  those  contained  in  the  books  properly  called  prophetical,  as 
those  which  occasionally  occur  in  other  parts  of  the  Scriptures. 
These,  I  apprehend,  will  be  generally  allowed  to  be  written  in  a 
style  truly  poetical,  indeed  admirable  in  its  kind  ;  as  the  many  ex- 
amples, which  we  have  already  produced,  will  sufficiently  demon- 
strate. I  fear,  however,  it  will  not  be  so  readily  granted  that  their 
claim  is  equally  well  founded  with  that  of  the  books,  which  are  com- 
monly called  poetical,  to  the  other  characteristic  of  poetry,  I  mean 
verse,  or  metrical  composition.  This  fact  is  denied  by  the  Jews ; 
and  it  is  denied  by  Jerome,1  who  was  a  diligent  scholar  of  the  Rab- 
binical writers :  after  these,  it  is  unnecessary  to  refer  to  more  recent 
authors,  who  partly  deny  that  the  Hebrews  were  possessed  of  any 
metre  at  all,  and  partly  allow  it  to  those  compositions  only,  which 
are  commonly  called  poetical,  or  at  most  extend  the  concession  to  a 
few  canticles  scattered  through  other  parts  of  the  Scriptures.  A 
thinking  person,  however,  will  not  be  misled  by  such  authorities  as 
these,  before  he  examines  whether  they  are  to  be  accounted  com- 
petent judges  in  this  case,  and  what  weight  and  credit  is  due  to 
their  testimony. 

1  See  Jerome,  Preface  to  ISAIAH. 


LECT.  XVIII.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  147 

The  Jews,  by  their  own  confession,  are  no  longer,  nor  have 
been  indeed  for  many  ages,  masters  of  the  system  of  the  ancient 
metre.  All  remembrance  of  it  has  ceased  from  those  times  in  which 
the  Hebrew  became  a  dead  language  ;  and  it  really  seems  probable, 
that  the  Masorites  (of  whom  so  little  is  known)  who  afterwards  dis- 
tinguished the  sacred  volumes  by  accents  and  vowel  points,  as  they 
are  now  extant,  were  possessed  of  so  trifling  and  imperfect  a  knowl- 
edge of  this  subject,  that  they  were  even  incapable  of  distinguishing 
what  was  written  in  metre  from  plain  prose.  For  when,  according 
to  their  manner,  they  marked  certain  books  as  metrical,  namely,  the 
Psalms,  the  Proverbs,  and  the  book  of  Job ;  they  accounted  others, 
which  are  no  less  evidently  metrical,  absolutely  prosaic,  such  as 
the  Song  of  Solomon,  and  the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah,  and  con- 
sequently assigned  to  them  the  common  prose  accent  only.  In  this 
opinion  the  Jews  universally  remain,  and  deny  that  these  books  are 
at  all  metrical,  or  to  be  classed  with  the  three  former.  Now  the 
disciple  is  hardly  to  be  supposed  to  have  more  information  than  his 
masters ;  and  although  Jerome  speaks  very  fluently  about  the  Te- 
trameters, the  Hexameters,  the  Sapphics,  and  Iambics,  of  the  He- 
brews, the  very  state  and  circumstances  of  the  case  demonstrate  how 
little  credit  is  due  to  his  authority.  Indeed  his  reasoning  evidently 
proceeds  from  a  confused  head,  when  he  attempts  to  trace  a  sort  of  re- 
mote similarity  between  the  Greek  and  Hebrew  metres  ;  and  to  ex- 
plain by  some  coarse  analogies  a  subject,  which  he  appears  to  have 
very  imperfectly  understood :  in  treating  of  which,  after  all,  he  is 
not  able  to  preserve  even  the  appearance  of  consistency.  For  in- 
stance, after  Josephus  and  Origen,  he  contends,  that  the  Song  of 
Moses  in  Deuteronomy  is  composed  in  Hexameter  and  Pentameter 
verse  ;  in  another  place,  however,  he  affirms  that  the  very  same 
poem  consists  of  Iambic  Tetrameters.  In  proof  of  his  opinion  he 
appeals  to  the  testimony  of  Philo,  Josephus,  Origen,  and  Eusebius, 
who  were  no  less  ignorant  of  the  nature  of  the  Hebrew  metres  than 
himself.2  Notwithstanding  the  opinion  therefore  of  Jerome  and  the 
Rabbinical  writers,  I  shall  beg  leave  to  offer  a  few  remarks  upon  the 
other  side  of  the  question ;  after  which  it  will  not  perhaps  be  thought 
altogether  improbable,  that  most  of  the  predictions  of  the  prophets, 
as  well  as  many  other  of  the  remains  of  Hebrew  literature,  were 
originally  published  in  a  metrical  form.(A) 

In  order  to  prove  that  the  predictions  of  the  prophets  are  metri^ 

2  See  JEROME,  Pref.  to  Job.     Pref.  to  Chron.  Eusebii  Epist.  civ.  ad  P.  Urbicam 


148  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  LfiCT.  XVIII. 

cal,  I  must  in  part  have  recourse  to  the  same  arguments,  by  which 
I  formerly  endeavoured  to  evince  that  the  Hebrew  poetry  in  general 
consisted  of  a  kind  of  metre  :  every  one  of  which  arguments,  I  must 
observe,  is  strictly  applicable  to  this  part  of  my  subject,  that  alone 
excepted  which  regards  the  alphabetic  poems.  That  it  would  be 
unnatural  and  absurd  to  look  for  instances  of  that  kind  in  the  pro- 
phetic poetry  is  evident ;  since  such  an  artificial  arrangement  would 
be  utterly  repugnant  to  the  nature  of  prophecy ;  it  is  plainly  the  ef- 
fect of  study  and  diligence,  not  of  imagination  and  enthusiasm  ;  a 
contrivance  to  assist  the  memory,  not  to  affect  the  passions.  The 
other  arguments,  however,  ought  to  be  particularly  adverted  to  upon 
this  subject :  the  poetic  dialect,  for  instance,  the  diction  so  totally 
different  from  the  language  of  common  life,  and  other  similar  cir- 
cumstances,3 which  an  attentive  reader  will  easily  discover,  but 
which  cannot  be  explained  by  a  few  examples ;  for  circumstances 
which,  taken  separately,  appear  but  of  small  account,  are  in  a  united 
view  frequently  of  the  greatest  importance.  To  these  we  may  add 
the  artificial  conformation  of  the  sentences  ;  which,  as  it  has  always 
appeared  to  me  a  necessary  concomitant  of  metrical  composition,  the 
only  one  indeed  which  is  now  apparent,  I  shall  afterwards  endeavour 
to  explain  more  at  large,  having  especial  regard  to  the  prophetic 
writers.  I  must  now  premise  a  few  other  arguments,  which  will 
probably  lead  to  the  establishment  of  my  opinion. 

The  prophets  were  chosen  by  God  himself,  and  were  certainly 
excellently  prepared  for  the  execution  of  their  office.  They  were  in 
general  taken  from  those,  who  had  been  educated  from  childhood  in 
a  course  of  discipline  adapted  to  the  ministerial  function.  It  is  evi- 
dent, from  many  purts  of  the  sacred  history,  that  even  from  the  ear- 
liest times  of  the  Hebrew  republic,  there  existed  certain  colleges  of 
prophets,  in  which  the  candidates  for  the  prophetic  office,  removed  alto- 
gether from  an  intercourse  with  the  world,  devoted  themselves  entirely 
to  the  exercises  and  study  of  religion  :  over  each  of  these  some  pro- 
phet of  superior  authority,  and  more  peculiarly  under  the  divine  influ- 
ence, presided,  as  the  moderator  and  preceptor  of  the  whole  assembly. 
Though  the  sacred  history  affords  us  but  little  information,  and  that 
in  a  cursory  manner,  concerning  their  institutes  and  discipline ;  we 
nevertheless  understand  that  a  principal  part  of  their  occupation  con- 
sisted in  celebrating  the  praises  of  Almighty  God  in  hymns  and  po- 
etry, with  choral  chants  accompanied  by  stringed  instruments  and 

3  See  LECT.  III. 


LECT.  XVIII.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  149 

pipes.(s)  There  is  a  remarkable  passage  which  occurs  to  this  pur- 
pose :  Saul  being  nominated  king,  and,  pursuant  to  the  command  of 
God,  consecrated  by  a  solemn  unction,  a  company  of  the  prophets, 
as  Samuel  had  foretold,  descending  from  the  mount  of  God,  (that  be- 
ing the  place  in  which  the  sacred  college  was  situated)  met  him  ; 
and,  preceded  by  a  variety  of  musical  instruments,  prophesied :  upon 
hearing  which,  he  himself,  as  if  actuated  by  the  same  spirit,  imme- 
diately joined  them,  and  prophesied  also.4  The  same  thing  again 
occurred  to  him,  and  the  persons  sent  by  him  to  take  David  prison- 
er at  Naioth ;  who,  when  they  saw  the  prophets  prophesying,  and 
Samuel  presiding  over  them,  seized  with  the  same  divine  spirit  and 
enthusiasm,  began  to  prophesy  along  with  them.5  I  find  no  discor- 
dance among  authors  concerning  the  nature  of  this  mode  of  prophe- 
sying :  all  are,  I  believe,  agreed  in  this  point,  and  all  understand  by 
it  the  praises  of  God  celebrated,  by  the  impulse  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
with  music  and  song.  In  this  they  follow  the  authority  of  the  Chal- 
dee  interpreters,  or  rather  the  evidence  of  reason  itself:  for  exactly 
in  the  same  manner,  Asaph,  Heman,  Iduthun,  who  were  the  chief 
musicians  in  the  temple,  are  said  "  to  have  prophesied  upon  the 
harp,  the  psaltery,  and  the  cymbal,  when  praise  and  thanksgiving 
were  offered  to  Jehovah."6  From  these  instances  it  is  sufficiently  \ 
apparent,  that  the  word  NT23  was  used  by  the  Hebrews  in  an  ambig-  / 
uous  sense,  and  that  it  equally  denoted  a  prophet,  a  poet,  or  a  musi- ) 
cian,  under  the  influence  of  divine  inspiration.  To  these  we  may 
add  the  prophetesses,  Miriam  the  sister  of  Aaron,  and  Deborah, 
who  were  distinguished  by  that  title,  not  only  because  they  pro-  \ 
nounced  the  oracles  of  Jehovah,  but  on  account  of  their  excellence  \ 
in  music  and  poetry ;  for  these  sister  arts  were  united  by  the  He-  1 
brews,  as  well  as  by  all  other  nations,  during  the  first  stages  of  socie-*/ 
ty.  After  these  proofs  there  can  scarcely  be  any  occasion  to  re- 
mark, that  Solomon,  or  at  least  the  editor  or  compiler  of  his  prov- 
erbs, twice  makes  use  of  the  word,  which,  in  its  ordinary  sense, 
means  prophecy,  strictly  so  called,  to  denote  the  language  of  poetry. 
For  he  calls  the  words  of  Agur  and  Lemuel  KiBtt,  which  Jerome 
renders  vision,  the  seventy  Greek  translators  an  oracle,  the  Chaldee 
prophecy:  when  in  reality  those  passages  have  nothing  in  them 
which  can  be  properly  said  to  bear  any  resemblance  to  prophecy ; 
but  are  mere  rhapsodies  of  morality,  ornamented  indeed  with  the 

4  1  SAM.  x.  5—10.          5  1  SAM,  xix.  20—24.          6  l  CHRON.  xxv.  1—3. 


150  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XVIIL 

usual  embellishments  of  poetry .7(c)  The  Hebrews  certainly  did  not 
express  by  the  same  word  ideas,  which  they  deemed  inconsistent,  or 
repugnant  to  each  other ;  and,  what  is  remarkable,  the  same  ambi- 
guity prevails,  the  same  word  (and  we  may  well  presume  for  similar 
reasons)  denotes  both  a  prophet  and  a  poet  in  the  Arabic  language, 
in  the  Greek,  and  in  the  Latin.8 

Nor  is  it  reasonable  to  suppose,  that  prophecy  admitted  poetry 
and  music  to  a  participation  in  the  name  alone ;  on  the  contrary  we 
find,  that  she  did  not  disdain  to  unite  herself  with  harmony,  and  to 
accept  of  her  assistance.  The  example  of  Elisha  is  remarkable 
who,  when  about  to  pronounce  the  answer  of  the  Most  High  to  tl 
inquiry  of  the  two  kings  of  Israel  and  Judah,  orders  a  minstrel  to 
brought  to  him,  and  upon  his  striking  the  harp,  is  immediately  agi 
tated  by  the  Holy  Spirit.9  Many  commentators  have  indeed  suppos- 
ed that  the  prophet  applied  to  music  only  to  soothe  the  perturbation 
of  his  mind ;  in  this  they  follow  an  opinion  of  some  of  the  more 
modern  Rabbies,  (an  opinion,  it  may  be  observed,  by  no  means  sat- 
isfactorily proved)  that  every  emotion  of  a  more  vehement  kind  ex- 
cluded the  Holy  Spirit,  and  consequently  was  totally  inconsistent 
with  prophecy  ;10  when,  on  the  contrary,  we  learn  from  the  testimo- 
ny of  the  prophets  themselves,  that  the  act  of  prophesying  was  often, 
if  not  always,  accompanied  with  a  very  violent  agitation  of  the 
mind.11  Be  this  as  it  may,  I  am  inclined  to  believe,  both  from  this 
last  and  the  other  instances,  that  the  prophet  himself  accompanied 
the  minstrel,  and  uttered  some  hymn,  or  rather  the  prediction  itself, 
to  the  music  of  the  harp  ;  and  both  the  style  and  the  form  of  this 
prophetic  reply  are  very  much  in  favour  of  this  opinion. 

From  all  these  testimonies  it  is  sufficiently  evident,  that  the  pro- 
phetic office  had  a  most  strict  connexion  with  the  poetic  art.  They 
had  one  common  name,  one  common  origin,  one  common  author,  the 

7  PROV.  xxx.  1.  xxxi.  1.     See  also  1  CHRON.  xv.  22,  and  27,   s'tttoh    ifc, 
a.QX<av  TO)V  taSwv,  Septu. 

8  M  /  /  ) 

^jAAJCc,  I7<™</»;TJ7$,  Vates.     See  JOSEPH  MEDE'S  Works,  p.  59.    TIT.  i-. 
*'  * 
12.    LUKE  i.  67,  and  HAMMOND  on  the  passage. 

9  2  KINGS  iii.  15. 

10  See  MAIMON.  More  Neboc.  ii.  36,  and  many  others  quoted  by  SMITH, 
Dissert,  of  Prophecy,  c.  viii. 

11  See  JER.  xxiii.  9.    EZEK.  iii.  14, 15.     DAN.  vii.  28,  x.  8.    HABAK.  iii. 
2  and  16. 


LECT.  XVIII.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  151 

Holy  Spirit.  Those  in  particular  were  called  to  the  exercise  of  the 
prophetic  office,  who  were  previously  conversant  with  the  sacred  po- 
etry. wTwas  equally  a  part  of  their  duty  to  compose  verses  for  the 
service  of  the  church,  and  to  declare  the  oracles  of  God  :  and  it  can- 
not, therefore,  be  doubted  that  a  great  portion  of  the  sacred  hymns 
may  properly  be  termed  prophecies,  or  that  many  of  the  prophecies 
are  in  reality  hymns  or  poems.  Since,  as  we  have  already  proved,  it 
was  from  the  first  a  principal  end  and  aim  of  poetry,  to  impress  upon 
the  minds  of  men  the  sayings  of  the  wise,  and  such  precepts  as  re- 
lated either  to  the  principles  of  faith,  or  the  laws  of  morality,  as  well 
as  to  transmit  the  same  to  posterity  ;  it  ought  not  to  appear  extraor- 
dinary, that  prophecy,  which  in  this  view  ranks  as  a  principal,  and  is 
of  the  highest  importance,  should  not  disdain  the  assistance  of  an 
art  so  admirably  calculated  to  effect  its  purposes.  Of  this  we  have 
an  illustrious  proof  in  that  prophetic  ode  of  Moses,12  which  he  com- 
posed by  the  especial  command  of  God,  to  be  learned  by  the  Israel- 
ites, and  committed  to  memory  :  "  That  this  song  may  be,"  says 
God  himself,  "  for  a  witness  against  the  people  of  Israel,  when  they 
shall  depart  from  me  ;  this  shall  be  a  testimony  in  their  mouths ;  for 
it  shall  not  be  forgotten,  nor  shall  it  depart  out  of  the  mouths  of 
their  posterity  for  ever."13 

But,  as  on  the  one  hand,  this  poem  of  Moses  is  a  clear  and  re- 
markable specimen  of  the  prophetic  mode  of  writing ;  so,  on  the  oth- 
er, there  are  many  prophecies  which  are  not  less  conspicuous  as  po- 
ems. It  remains,  therefore,  only  to  produce  a  few  examples  from 
the  prophetic  writings.  Many  of  the  most  ancient  of  those,  which 
are  extant  in  the  Mosaic  history,  I  have  already  quoted,14  as  exhib- 
iting the  fairest  examples  of  the  Hebrew  poetry  :  for  instance,  the 
imprecation  of  Noah,  the  blessing  of  Jacob,  and  the  predictions  of 
Balaam  :  than  all  which  (and  particularly  those  of  Balaam)  I  do  not 
know  that  the  whole  extent  of  the  prophetic  writings  could  afford 
more  pertinent  instances.  Nay,  so  eminently  distinguished  are  they 
by  all  the  characteristics  of  poetry,  that  those  who  are  inclined  to  ac- 
knowledge any  kind  of  metre  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  must,  I  am 
convinced,  refer  to  these  as  metrical  compositions,  if  they  be  in  the 
least  desirous  of  maintaining  their  opinion  by  fact  and  argument. 
Among  the  prophecies  of  Balaam  I  will  also  venture  to  class  that 
most  elegant  poem,  which  is  rescued  from  oblivion  by  the  prophet 
Micah,  and  which  in  matter  and  diction,  in  the  structure,  form,  and 

12  DEUT.  xxxii.          13  See  DEUT.  xxxi.  19,  21.          14  See  Lect.  IV. 


152  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  LiECT.  XVIII. 

character  of  the  composition,  so  admirably  agrees  with  the  other 
monuments  of  his  fame,  that  it  evidently  appears  to  be  a  citation 
from  the  answer  of  Balaam  to  the  king  of  the  Moabites  :15 

"  Quanam  re  instructus  comparebo  coram  lehova? 

"  Inclinabo  me  supplex  coram  Deo  altissimo  ? 

"  Nura  comparebo  coram  eo  cum  holocaustis ; 

"  Cum  vitulis  anniculis  ? 

"  Num  accepta  erunt  lehovae  millia  arietum  : 

"  Dena  millia  fluentorum  olei  ? 

"  An  dabo  primogenitum  meum  hostiam  pro  peccato  meo  ; 

"  Ventris  mei  fructum  piaculum  animae  meae  ? 

"  Indicavit  tibi,  o  homo,  quid  sit  bonum, 

"  Et  quid  lehova  a  te  exigit  ? 

"  Nisi  ut  aequum  facias,  et  pietatem  colas, 

"  Et  submisse  te  geras  erga  Deum  tuum."lG 

But  if  we  proceed  to  other  parts  of  the  Sacred  History,  exam- 
ples will  not  be  wanting :  and  among  the  first  of  these  is  that  Cyg- 
nean  song  of  Moses,  as  it  may  properly  be  called ;  I  do  not  speak  of 
the  prophetic  ode,  which  has  frequently  been  distinguished  by  that 
title,  but  of  the  last  blessing  of  that  divine  prophet,  in  which  are  pre- 
dicted the  future  fortunes  of  the  Israelites  : 

"  lehova  ex  Sina  prodiit ; 

"  Et  ex  Sehire  illis  exortus  est."l? 

The  prophecy  is  evidently  of  the  same  nature  with  that  of  Jacob ; 
both  in  the  exordium  and  the  conclusion  it  is  exquisitely  sublime  ; 
and  throughout  the  whole  affords  an  admirable  specimen  of  the  pro- 
phetic poetry.  In  the  same  class  with  these  may  be  ranked  the  an- 
swer of  Samuel  the  prophet  to  Saul,  in  which  he  reproaches  him 
with  his  disobedience  and  contumacy,  and  denounces  against  him 
the  Divine  decree  of  expulsion  from  his  kingdom.  It  consists  of 
four  distichs  elegantly  corresponding  to  each  other. 

"Num  delectatur  lehova  holocaustis  et  sacrificiis, 

"  Aeque  ac  obsequio  voci  eius  praestito  ? 

"  Scito,  obsequium  melius  esse  sacrificio, 

"  Et  obedientiam  adipe  arietum. 

"  Profecto  ut  crimen  divinationis  est  rebellio, 

"  Et  quasi  scelus  idololatriae  contumacia. 

"  Quoniam  repudiasti  man  datum  lahovae, 

"  Et  ipse  te  repudiavit,  ne  rex  sis. "18 

15  See  MIC.  vi.  5,  and  Bishop  BUTLER'S    Sermon    on  the  character   of 
Balaam. 

16  MIC.  vi.  6—8.  17  DEUT.  xxxiii.  18  1  SAM.  xv.  22, 23. 


LECT,  XVIII.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  153 

The  last  words  of  David19  afford  an  evident  and  illustrious  in- 
stance to  the  same  purpose,  however  difficult  and  obscure  the  verbal 
interpretation  of  the  prophecy  may  be.  I  apprehend  the  examples 
from  sacred  history  will  appear  sufficiently  numerous,  if  I  add  the 
prediction  of  Isaiah  concerning  Senacherib,  which  is  inserted  in  the 
book  of  Kings  : 

"  Contempsit  te,  subsannavit  te,  virgo  filia  Sionis; 

"  Post  te  caput  movit  filia  Hierosolymorum  :" — 20 

The  same  passage  occurs  again  among  the  predictions  of  the  pro- 
phet :  and  this  reminds  me  that  it  is  now  full  time  to  pass  from  the 
historians  to  the  books  of  the  prophets  themselves,  which  will  afford 
us  abundant  instances  to  demonstrate  that  the  compositions  of  the 
prophets  are  truly  poetical,  and  at  the  same  time  to  illustrate  the  na- 
ture of  their  poetry. 

19  2  SAM.  xxiii.  1—7.  20  2  KINGS  xix.  21—34.    ISAI.  xxxvii.  22—35. 


LECTURE  XIX. 


THE  PROPHETIC  POETRY  IS  SENTENTIOUS. 

The  psalmody  of  the  Hebrews — The  manner  of  chanting  the  hymns  by  alternate  choirs  ;  whence 
the  origin  of  the  poetical  construction  of  the  sentences,  and  that  peculiar  form,  in  which 
verses  and  distichs  run  parallel  or  correspondent  to  each  other — Three  species  of  parallelism  ; 
the  synonymous,  the  antithetic,  and  the  synthetic  ;  examples  of  each,  first  from  the  books 
generally  allowed  to  be  poetical,  and  afterwards  from  the  writings  of  the  prophets — The  sen- 
timents of  R.  Azarias  considered — The  great  importance  of  an  accurate  attention  to  this  po- 
etical conformation  of  the  sentences. 

THE  origin  and  earliest  application  of  the  Hebrew  poetry  have,  I 
think,  been  clearly  traced  into  the  service  of  religion.  To  celebrate 
in  hymns  and  songs  the  praises  of  Almighty  God ;  to  decorate  the 
worship  of  the  Most  High  with  all  the  charms  and  graces  of  harmo- 
ny ;  to  give  force  and  energy  to  the  devout  affections,  was  the  sub- 
lime employment  of  the  sacred  muse.  It  is  more  than  probable, 
that  the  very  early  use  of  sacred  music  in  the  public  worship  of  the 
Hebrews,  contributed  not  a  little  to  the  peculiar  character  of  their 
poetry,  and  might  impart  to  it  that  appropriate  form,  which,  though 
chiefly  adapted  to  this  particular  purpose,  it  nevertheless  preserves 
on  every  other  occasion.  But  in  order  to  explain  this  matter  more 
clearly,  it  will  be  necessary  to  premise  a  few  observations  concern- 
ing the  ancient  Hebrew  mode  of  chanting  their  sacred  hymns. 

Though  we  are  rather  at  a  loss  for  information,  respecting  the 
usual  manner  and  ceremony  of  chanting  their  poems  ;  and  though 
the  subject  of  their  sacred  music  in  general  be  involved  in  doubt  and 
obscurity,  thus  far  at  least  is  evident  from  many  examples,  that  the 
sacred  hymns  were  alternately  sung  by  opposite  choirs,1  and  that  the 
one  choir  usually  performed  the  hymn  itself,  while  the  other  sung  a 
particular  distich,  which  was  regularly  interposed  at  stated  intervals, 
either  of  the  nature  of  the  proasm  or  epode  of  the  Greeks.  In 
this  manner  we  learn  that  Moses  with  the  Israelites  chanted  the  ode 
at  the  Red  Sea ;  for  "  Miriam  the  prophetess  took  a  timbrel  in  her 
hand,  and  all  the  women  followed  her  with  timbrels,  and  with  danc- 

i  See  NEHBM.  xii,  24,  31,  38,  40,  and  the  title  of  the  PSALM  Ixxxviii. 


LECT.  XIX.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  155 


es ;  and  Miriam  answered  them,"  that  is,  she  and  the  women  sung 
the  response  to  the  chorus  of  men  : 

"  Cantate  lehovae,  quiae  magnifice  sese  extulit; 
"  Equum  equitemque  in  mare  deiecit."2 

The  same  is  observable  in  some  of  the  psalms,  which  are  composed 
in  this  form.  The  musical  performance  was  on  some  occasions  dif- 
ferently conducted  :  for  instance,  one  of  the  choirs  sung  a  single 
verse  to  the  other,  while  the  other  constantly  added  a  verse  in  some 
respect  correspondent  to  the  former.  Of  this  the  following  distich  is 
an  example  : 

"  Celebrate  lehovam,  quia  bonus  ; 

"  Quia  aeterna  est  eius  benignitas  :" 

which  Ezra3  informs  us  was  sung  by  the  priests  and  Levites  in  alter- 
nate choirs  at  the  command  of  David ;  as  indeed  may  be  collected 
from  the  psalm  itself,4  in  which  the  latter  verse,  sung  by  the  latter 
choir,  forms  a  perpetual  epode.  Of  the  same  nature  is  the  song  of 
the  women  concerning  Saul  and  David,5  for  "  the  women  who  play- 
ed answered  one  another ;"  that  is,  they  chanted  in  two  choirs  the 
alternate  song,  the  one  choir  singing, 

"  Saul  hath  smote  his  thousands," 

The  other  answering, 

"  And  David  his  ten  thousands." 

In  the  very  same  manner  Isaiah  describes  the  seraphim  chanting  the 
praise  of  Jehovah  :6  "  they  cried  alternately, 

"  Sanctus,  sanctus,  sanctus,  lehova  exercituum  ! 

"  Plena  est  gloria  eius  universa  tellus." 

From  the  Jewish,  the  custom  of  singing  in  alternate  chorus  was 
transmitted  to  the  Christian  church,  and  was  continued  in  the  lat- 
ter from  the  first  ages ;  it  was  called  "  alternate  or  responsive,"7 
when  the  whole  choir,  separated  into  two  divisions,  sung  the  psalm 
alternately  by  strophes  ;  and  when  this  was  done  by  single  verses,  or 
lines,  that  is,  when  the  same  division  of  the  choir  always  sung  the 

2  EXOD.  xv.  20, 21.     See  PHILO  TISQI  ytu^yias,  pag.  199,  also  nsqi  (tiov  -&SWQII- 
TIXOV,  pag.  902.     Edit.  Paris,  1640. 

3  EZRA  iii.  11.  4  PSAL.  cxxxvi.  5  1  SAM.  xviii.  7. 

6  Is.  vi.  3.     See  what  Socrates  relates  of  the  origin  of  the  ancient  hymns. 
Hist.  Eccl.  vi.  8. 

7  PLIN.  Lib.  x.  Epist.  97—"  quod  essent  soliti  carmen  Christo,  quasi  Deo, 
dicere  secum  invicem." 


156  PROPHETIC   POETRY.  L.ECT.  XIX. 


latter  part  of  the  distich,  they  were  said  to  sing  the  choral  re- 
sponse.8^) 

Now  if  this  were  the  ancient  and  primitive  mode  of  chanting 
their  hymns,  as  indeed  appears  highly  probable,  the  proximate  cause 
will  be  easily  explained,  why  poems  of  this  kind  are  disposed  in 
equal  stanzas,  indeed  in  equal  distichs,  for  the  most  part ;  and  why 
these  distichs  should  in  some  measure  consist  of  versicles  or  paral- 
lelisms corresponding  to  each  other.9  And  this  mode  of  composi- 
tion being  admirably  adapted  to  the  musical  modulation  of  that  kind 
of  poetry,  which  was  most  in  use  among  them  from  the  very  begin- 
ning, and  at  the  same  time  being  perfectly  agreeable  to  the  genius 
and  cadence  of  the  language,  easily  extended  itself  into  the  other 
species  of  poetry,  though  not  designed  for  the  same  purpose  ;  in  fact, 
we  find  that  it  pervaded  the  whole  of  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  ; 
insomuch  that  what  was  said  of  the  heathen  muses  may  still  more 
strictly  be  applied  to  those  of  the  Hebrews, — "  they  love  alternate 
song."  On  this  occasion  also  it  may  not  be  improper  to  remark, 
that  the  word  n:3>,  which  properly  signifies  to  answer,  is  used  more 
generally  to  denote  any  song  or  poem  ;10  whence  we  can  only  infer, 
either  that  the  word  has  passed  from  particular  to  general  use,  or 
that  among  the  Hebrews  almost  every  poem  possesses  a  sort  of  re- 
sponsive form. 

Such  appears  to  have  been  the  origin  and  progress  of  that  poeti- 
cal and  artificial  conformation  of  the  sentences,  which  we  observe  in 
the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews.  That  it  prevailed  no  less  in  the  pro- 
phetic poetry  than  in  the  lyric  and  didactic,  to  which  it  was,  in  the 
nature  of  things,  most  adapted,  is  evident  from  those  very  ancient 
specimens  of  poetical  prophecy  already  quoted  from  the  historical 
books  ;  and  it  only  remains  to  shew,  that  it  is  no  less  observable  in 
those  which  are  contained  in  the  volumes  of  the  prophets  themselves. 
In  order  the  more  clearly  to  evince  this  point,  I  shall  endeavour  to 
illustrate  the  Hebrew  parallelism  according  to  its  different  species, 

8  See  BINGHAM'S  Antiquities  of  the  Christian  Church,  xiv.  1. 

9  "  The  correspondence  of  one  verse,  or  line,  with  another,  I  call  parallel- 
ism.    When  a  proposition  is  delivered,  and  a  second  is  subjoined  to  it,  or  drawn 
under  it,  equivalent,  or  contrasted  with  it,  in  sense  ;  or  similar  to  it  in  the  form 
of  grammatical  construction ;  these   I  call  parallel  lines ;  and  the  words  or 
phrases,  answering  one  to  another  in  the  corresponding  lines,  parallel  terms^" 
LOWTH'S  Prelim.  Dis.  to  Isaiah. 

10  EXOD.  xxxii.  18.     NUM.  xxi.  17.     Hos.  ii.  15.     PSAL.  cxlvii.  7, 


LECT.  XIX.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  157 

first  by  examples  taken  from  those  books  commonly  allowed  to  be 
poetical,  and  afterwards  by  correspondent  examples  from  the  books 
of  the  prophets. 

The  poetical  conformation  of  the  sentences,  which  has  been  so 
often  alluded  to  as  characteristic  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  consists 
chiefly  in  a  certain  equality,  resemblance,  or  parallelism  between  the 
members  of  each  period ;  so  that  in  two  lines  (or  members  of  the 
same  period)  things  for  the  most  part  shall  answer  to  things,  and 
words  to  words,  as  if  fitted  to  each  other  by  a  kind  of  rule  or  meas- 
ure. This  parallelism  has  much  variety  and  many  gradations  ;  it  is 
sometimes  more  accurate  and  manifest,  sometimes  more  vague  and 
obscure :  it  may  however,  on  the  whole,  be  said  to  consist  of  three 
species. 

The  first  species  is  the  synonymous  parallelism,  when  the  same  \ 
sentiment  is  repeated  in  different,  but  equivalent  terms.     This  is  the  \ 
most  frequent  of  all,  and  is  often  conducted  with  the  utmost  accura- 
cy and  neatness  :  examples  are  very  numerous,  nor  will  there  be  any 
great  difficulty  in  the  choice  of  them :  on  this  account  I  shall  select 
such  as  are  most  remarkable  in  other  respects. 

"  Cum  exiret  Israel  ex  Aegypto, 

"  Domus  lacobi  e  populo  barbaro  : 

"  Erat  illi  luda  in  sanctara  ditionera, 

"  Israel  illius  imperium. 

"  Vidit  mare,  et  fugitj 

"  lordanes  con  versus  est  retro  : 

"  Montes  subsiluerunt,  ut  arietes, 

"  Colles,  ut  filii  ovium. 

"  Quid  tibi,  o  mare,  quod  fugeris, 

"  lordanes,  conversus  fueris  retro, 

"  Montes,  subsilueritis  ut  arietes, 

•'*  Colles,  ut  filii  ovium  ? 

"  A  conspectu  Domini  contremisce,  tellus ; 

"  A  conspectu  Dei  lacobi ! 

"  Qui  vertit  rupem  in  stagnum  aquarum, 

"  Petram  in  fontem  aquarum. "H 

The  prophetic  muse  is  no  less  elegant  and  correct : 

"  Surge,  effulge,  nam  venit  lux  tua; 
"  Et  gloria  lehovae  super  te  oritur. 
"  Ecce  enim  tenebrae  operient  terrara  ; 
"  Et  densa  caligo  populos  : 
"  Super  te  autem  exorietur  lehova ; 
"  Et  gloria  eius  super  te  conspicua  erit. 

11  Ps.  cxiv. 


158  PROPHETIC   POETRY.  I.ECT.  XIX. 

"  Et  incedent  gentes  in  luce  tua ; 
"  Et  reges  in  splendore  ortus  tui. "12 

Observe  also  that  famous  prophecy  concerning  the  humiliation  and 
expiatory  sufferings  of  the  Messiah  : 

"  Quis  credidit  praedicationi  nostrae ; 

"  Et  brachium  lehovae  cuinam  patefactum  est  ? 

"  Ascendit  enim  coram  ut  surculus, 

"  Et  ut  stirps  e  terra  siticulosa : 

"  Nulla  illi  forma,  nullus  decor,  ut  aspiceremus  eum ; 

"  Neque  erat  aspectus  eius,  ut  eum  cuperemus. 

"  Contemptus,  neque  amplius  inter  viros  habitus ; 

"  Vir  dolorum,  et  aegritudinem  expertus  : 

"  Et  veluti  qui  faciem  a  nobis  absconderet, 

"  Contemptus,  neque  eum  aestimavimus. 

"  Certe  infirmitates  nostras  ipse  pertulit ; 

"  Et  dolores  nostros  ipse  sustinuit : 

"  Nos  tamen  eum  aestimavimus  plaga  affectum ; 

"  Percussum  divinitus,  et  afflictum. 

"  Ille  autem  vulneratus  est  propter  peccata  nostra ; 

"  Contusus  ob  nostras  iniquitates  : 

"  Poena  nobis  salutaris  ei  imponitur ; 

"  Et  per  eius  livorem  sit  nostra  curatio."13 

Isaiah  is  indeed  excellent,  but  not  unrivalled  in  this  kind  of  compo- 
sition :  there  are  abundant  examples  in  the  other  prophets  ;  I  shall, 
however,  only  add  one  from  Hosea,  which  is  exquisitely  pathetic. 

"  Quomodo  dedam  te,  o  Ephraim  ! 

"  Abdicam  te,  o  Israel  ! 

"  Quomodo  reddam  te  Admae  similem  j 

"  Faciam  te  instar  Zeboimorum  ! 

"  Intus  convertitur  cor  meum ; 

"  Simul  aestuant  viscera  mea  poenitentia. 

"  Non  exequar  irae  meae  fervorem ; 

"  Non  iterum  perdam  Ephraimum  : 

"  Quia  Deus  ego  sum,  et  non  homo ; 

"  In  medio  tui  sanctus,  quanquam  urbes  non  habito."H(B) 

There  is  great  variety  in  the  form  of  the  synonymous  parallelism, 
some  instances  of  which  are  deserving  of  remark.  The  parallelism 
is  sometimes  formed  by  the  iteration  of  the  former  member,  either  in 
the  whole  or  in  part : 

"  Multum  oppugnaverunt  me  ab  adolescentia  mea, 
"  Dicat  nunc  Israel ; 

"  Multum  oppugnaverunt  me  ab  adolescentia  mea, 
"  Non  tamen  mihi  praevaluerunt."15 

12  ISAI.  Ix.  1—3.     13  ISAI.  liii.  1—5.     H  Hos.  xi.  8,  9.     15  PSAL.  cxxix.  1 ,  2. 


LECT.  XIX.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  159 

"  Deus  ultionum,  lehova ; 

"  Deus  ultionum,  effulge. 

"  Quousque  impii,  o  lehova 

"  Quousque  impii  triumphabunt.16 

"  Maxilla  asini,  acervum,  acervos  duos; 
"  Maxilla  asini,  percussi  mille  viros."17 
Thus,  Isaiah  : 

"  Profecto  noctu  vastatur  Ar  Moabi,  exscinditur; 
"  Profeeto  noctu  vastatur  Kir  Moabi,  exscinditur. "18 

So  Nahum  also  in  the  exordium  of  his  sublime  prophecy  : 
"  Deus  zelotes,  et  ultor  lehova; 
"  Ultor  lehova,  et  irritabilis  : 
"  Ultor  lehova  inimicorum  suorum  ; 
"  Et  iniuriae  memor  ille  in  hostes  suos."19 

There  is  frequently  something  wanting  in  the  latter  member,    //- 
which  must  be  repeated  from  the  former  to  complete  the  sentence  : 
"  Misit  rex,  et  solvit  eura  ; 
"  Dominator  populorum,  et  eura  liberavit."20 

In  the  same  manner  Isaiah ; 

"  Reges  videbunt,  et  assurgent ; 
"  Principes,  et  adorabunt : 
"  Propter  lehovam,  qui  fidelis  est; 
"  Sanctum  Israelis,  et  te  elegit."2l 

Frequently  the  whole  of  the  latter  division  answers  only  to  some  part 
of  the  former  : 

"  lehova  regnat,  exultet  tellus  ; 

"  Laetentur  insulae  plurimae."22 

"  Surge,  efFulge,  nam  venit  lux  tua; 
"  Et  gloria  lehovae  super  te  oritur."23 

Sometimes  also  there  are  triplet  parallelisms.     In  these  the  second     VX 
line  is  generally  synonymous  with  the  first,  whilst  the  third  either 
begins  the  period,  or  concludes  it,  and  frequently  refers  to  both  the 

preceding : 

"  Sustulerunt  fluctus,  o  lehova, 

"  Sustulerunt  flnctus  vocem  suaiu  ; 

"  Usque  sustulerunt  fluctus  fremitus  suos. 

"  Vocibus  aquaram  multarum, 

"  Magnificis  maris  fragoribus, 

"  Magnificentior  in  excelso  lehova.  "24 

16  PSAL.  xciv.  1  and  3.  17  JUD.  xv.  16.  18  Chap.  xv.  1. 

19  NAH.  i.  2.  20  pSAL.  cv.  20.  21  ISAI.  xnx.  7. 

22  PSAL.  xcvii.  1.  23  ISAI.  \x.  \.  24  pSAL.  xciji.  3?  4. 


160  PROPHETIC    POETRY,  L.ECT.  XIX. 

"  Agile,  redeamus  ad  lehovam  ; 

"  Nam  ipse  laceravit,  et  sanabit  nos, 

"  Sauciavit,  et  nos  curabit : 

"  Vitae  nos  restituet  post  biduum, 

"  Die  tertio  nos  suscitabit, 

"  Et  in  conspectu  eius  vivemus."25 

In  stanzas  (if  I  may  so  call  them)  of  five  lines,  the  nature  of  which 
is  nearly  similar,  the  line  that  is  not  parallel  is  generally  placed  be- 
tween the  two  distiches : 

"  Queraadmodum  rugit  leo, 

41  Et  catulus  leonis  super  praedam  suam, 

"  In  quern  cogitur  pastorum  turba ; 

"  Ad  vocem  eorum  non  pavebit, 

"  Neque  ad  tumultum  eorum  animum  deiieiet."26 

"  Videbit  Ascalon,  et  timebit  j 

"  Et  Gaza,  et  vehementer  dolebit ; 

"  Et  Accaron,  quoniam  puduit  expectationis  suae  : 

"  Et  peribit  rex  de  Gaza, 

"  Et  Ascalon  non  habitabitur."2? 

Those  which  consist  of  four  lines  generally  form  two  regular  dis- 
tichs ;  but  there  is  sometimes  a  peculiar  artifice  to  be  perceived  in 
the  distribution  of  the  sentences  : 

l-1  De  coelo  prospicit  lehova, 

*'  Cernit  omnes  filios  hominis ; 

"  De  sede  domicilii  sui  contemplatur 

"  Omnes  incolas  telluris."28 

"  Inebriabo  sagittas  meas  sanguine, 
"  Et  gladius  meus  devorabit  carnem ; 
"  Sanguine  confossorum  captorumque, 
"  De  capite  capillato  inimici."29 

In  both  the  above  passages,  the  latter  members  are  to  be  alternately 
referred  to  the  former.  Isaiah  too  uses  with  great  elegance  this 
form  of  composition : 

"  Nam  maritus  tibi  erit  creator  tuus ; 
"  Nomen  illi  lehova  exercituum : 
"  Et  redemptor  tuus  sanctus  Israelis ; 
"  Deus  universae  terrae  vocabitur."30 

The  sense  has  an  alternate  correspondence  in  these  lines.  In  the 
following,  the  form  of  the  construction  is  alternate : 

"  Et  plena  est  terra  eius  argento  et  auro, 
"  Et  nullus  est  modus  eius  thesauris  ; 

25  Hos.  vi.  1,  2.  26  ISAI.  xxxi.  4.  27  ZECH.  ix.  5. 

2B  PSAL.  xxxiii.  13, 14.          29  DEUT.  xxxii.  42.  30  ISAI.  liv.  5. 


LBCT.  XIX.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  161 

"  Et  plena  est  terra  eius  equis, 

"  Et  nullus  est  modus  eius  curribus."3l 

The  following  is  perhaps  a  singular  instance  : 
"  Quis  sicut  lehova  Deus  noster? 
"  Qui  altissime  habitat, 
"  Qui  huraillime  respicit, 
"  In  coelis  et  in  terra."32 

Here  the  two  members  of  the  latter  line  are  to  be  referred  severally 
to  the  two  preceding  lines  ;  as  if  it  were  :  "  Who  is  exalted  to  dwell 
in  the  heavens,  and  who  humbleth  himself  to  inspect  the  things  that 
are  in  the  earth." 

The  antithetic^parallelism  is  the  next  that  I  shall  specify,  when 
a  thing  is  illustrated  by  its  contrary  being  opposed  to  it.  This  is 
not  confined  to  any  particular  form  :  for  sentiments  are  opposed  to 
sentiments,  words  to  words,  singulars  to  singulars,  plurals  to  plurals, 
etc.  of  which  the  following  are  examples  : 

"  Fideles  sunt  plagae  amantis ; 

"  Sed  mendacia  osculu  osoris. 

"  Anima  satura  proculcabit  favum ; 

"  Sed  animae  esurienti  omne  amarum  dulce  est. 

"  Est,  qui  divitem  se  simulat,  curnei  desint  omnia; 

"  Qui  pauperem  se  fingit,  cum  ei  divitiae  sint  multae. 

"  Sapiens  sibi  videtur  vir  dives ; 

"  Sed  pauper  prudens  eum  explorabit."33 

There  is  sometimes  a  contraposition  of  parts  in  the  same  sentence, 
such  as  occurs  once  in  the  above  ;  and  as  appears  in  the  following  : 

"  Nigra  sum,  sed  tamen  pulchra,  O  Hierosolymitides  ; 

"  Sicut  tentoria  Kedarensium,  sicut  aulaea  Salomonis."34 

The  last  line  here  is  also  to  be  divided  and  separately  applied  to 
the  preceding,  "  swarthy  as  the  tents  of  Kedar ;  comely  as  the  pavil- 
ions of  Solomon  ;"  so  likewise  in  the  enigma  of  Samson  : 

"  Ex  edaci  prodiit  edulium ; 

"  Atque  ex  acri  prodiit  dulcedo."35 

This  form  of  composition,  indeed,  agrees  best  with  adages  and 
acute  sayings :  it  is  therefore  very  prevalent  in  the  proverbs  of  Solo- 
mon, in  some  of  which  the  principal  force  and  elegance  depend  on 
the  exactness  of  the  antithesis.  It  is  not  however  inconsistent  with 
the  superior  kinds  of  Hebrew  poetry  ;  for  we  meet  with  it  in  the 

31  ISAI.  ii.  7.  32  PS.  cxiii.  5,  6.  33  PROV.  xxvii  6,  7.  xiii.  7.  xxviii.  11. 
34  SONG  of  SOLOMON  i.  5.  35  JUD.  xiv.  14. 


162  PROPHETIC   POETRY.  L.ECT.  XIX. 

thanksgiving  ode  of  Hannah,  which  is  imitated  in  this  particular,  as 
well  as  in  the  general  form  of  its  composition,  in  that  of  the  Virgin 
Mary : 

"  Arcus  fortium  conteruntur  ; 

"  Et  qui  lapsi  sunt,  accinguntur  robore  : 

"  Saturi  ob  victura  operam  suam  locant ; 

"  Et  famelici  esurire  desinunt : 

"  Etiam  sterilis  septies  peperit ; 

"  Et  quae  abundarat  liberis,  orba  est. 

"  lehova  neci  dat,  et  vitae  restituit ; 

"  Deiicit  in  orcum,  et  educit. 

"  lehova  depauperat,  et  ditat ; 

"  Deprimit,  idemque  evehit."36 

The  sublimer  poetry  seldom  indeed  adopts  this  style.  Isaiah,  how- 
ever, by  means  of  it,  without  departing  from  his  usual  dignity,  adds 
greatly  to  the  sweetness  of  his  composition  in  the  following  instances : 

"  Pusillo  momento  dereliqui  te  ; 
"  At  miserationibus  magnis  te  colligam : 
"  Momentanea  iracundia  vultum  a  te  paulisper  abdidi ; 
"  At  sempiterna  dementia  tui  miserebor,  ait  lehova  redemptor  tuus."37 

"  Ecce  servi  mei  edent,  sed  vos  esurietis ; 

"  Ecce  servi  mei  bibent,  sed  vos  sitietis  ; 

"  Ecce  servi  mei  laetabuntur,  sed  vos  pudore  suffundemini : 

"  Ecce  servi  mei  cantabunt  prae  laetitia  animi ; 

11  Sed  vos  lamentabimini  prae  angore  animi, 

"  Et  prae  mentis  cruciatu  eiulabitis."38 

There  is  a  third  species  of  parallelism,  in  which  the  sentences 
answer  to  each  other,  not  by  the  iteration  of  the  same  image  or  sen- 
timent, or  the  opposition  of  their  contraries,  but  merely  by  the  form 
of  construction.  To  this,  which  may  be  called  the  Synthetic  or  Con- 
structive Parallelism,  may  be  referred  all  such  as  do  not  come  with- 
in the  two  former  classes  :  I  shall  however  produce  a  few  of  the  most 
remarkable  instances  : 

"  Lex  lehovae  Integra  est,  restitueris  animam ; 

"  Testimonium  lehovae  verax,  sapientiam  praestans  imperito 

"  Praecepta  lehovae  recta  sunt.  cor  exhilarantia ; 

"  Disciplina  lehovae  pura,  oculos   illuminans  : 

"  Reverentia  lehovae  casta  est,  perpetuo  perstans  ; 

"  ludicia  lehovae  ipsa  veritas,  iusta  sunt  pariter  : 

"  Desiderabiliora  sunt  auro,  et  obryzo  plurimo ; 

"  Et  dulciora  melle,  favis  stillantibus."39 

36  1  SAM.  ii.  4—7.   Compare  LUKE  i.  52,  53.  37  ISAI.  uv.  7,  8V 

38  ISAI.  Ixv.  13, 14.  39  PSALM  xix.  8—11. 


LECT.  XIX.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  163 

This  kind  of  parallelism  generally  consists  of  verses  somewhat  long- 
er than  usual,  of  which  there  are  not  wanting  examples  in  the  pro- 
phets : 

"  Quomodo  cessavit  oppressor,  cessavit  auri  exactrix  ! 

"  Fregit  lehova  virgam  impiorum,  sceptrum  dominantium  ! 

"  Qui  caedebat  populos  atrociter,  plaga  nunquam  remissa  j 

"  Qui  irate  dominabatur  gentibus,  profligatur  nullo  prohibent*. 

"  Quiescit,  tranquilla  est  tota  tellus  ;  erumpunt  in  cantum : 

"  Etiam  abietes  laetantur  de  te,  cedri  Libani ; 

11  Ex  quo  iacuisti,  non  ascendit  in  nos  excisor. 

"  Orcus  propterte  commovetur  subtus,  ut  venienti  eat  obviam; 

"  Excitat  tibi  defunctos,  oranes  primores  terrae  ; 

"  Surgere  facit  de  soliis  suis  omnes  reges  gentium. "40 

Triplets  are  frequently  formed  of  this  kind  of  parallelism  : 

"  Exundaverunt  aquis  nubes ; 

"  Fragorem  edidit  aether ; 

"  Turn  sagittae  tuae  discurrerunt  ; 

"  Vox  tonitrus  tui  in  turbine  j 

"  Illuxerunt  orbi  fulgura ; 

"  Commota  est  et  intremuit  tellus. "41 

"  Ero  sicut  ros  Israeli ; 

"  Germinabit  in  morera  lilii ; 

"  Et  radices  aget  instar  Libani. 

"  Precedent  eius  surculi ; 

"  Eritque  decus  eius  instar  oleae  ; 

"  Et  odor  ei,  qualis  Libano."42 

Frequently  one  line  or  member  contains  two  sentiments : 

"  Tumultuantur  gentes  ;  commoventur  regna  : 
"  Edit  vocem  (Deus) ;  illico  colliquescit  tellus. 
"  Desistite,  atque  agnoscite  me  esse  Deum : 
"  Evehar  in  gentibus;  evehar  in  terra."43 

"  Cum  transibis  aquas,  ego  tibi  adero; 
"  Cum  flumina,  non  te  submergent : 
"  Cum  vades  per  ignem,  non  cremaberis ; 
"  Et  flamma  non  te  comburet."44 

There  is  a  peculiar  figure  which  is  frequently  made  use  of  in  this 
species  of  parallelism,  and  which  seems  altogether  poetical :  that  is, 
when  a  definite  number  is  put  for  an  indefinite,  principally,  it  should 
seem,  for  the  sake  of  the  parallelism  :  for  it  sometimes  happens,  that 
the  circumstances  afterwards  enumerated  do  not  accurately  accord 
with  the  number  specified  : 

40  ISAI.  xiv.  4—9.  41  pSALM  ixxvii.  18, 19.  42  Hos.  xiv.  6f  7 

43  PSALM  xlvi.  6  and  10.  44  ISAJ.  xliii.  2. 


164  PROPHETIC    POETRY.  LECT.  XIX, 

"  In  sex  periculis  te  liberabit  ; 

"  Et  in  septem  non  attinget  te  malum."45 

"  Semel  locutus  est  Deus  ; 
"  Bis  etiam  illud  audivi."46 

That  frequently  repeated  passage  of  Amos  is  well  known  : 

"  Propter  tria  peccata  Damasci, 

"  Et  propter  quatuor,  earn  non  restituam."47 

The  variety  in  the  form  of  this  synthetic  parallelism  is  very  great, 
and  the  degrees  of  resemblance  almost  infinite  :  so  that  sometimes 
the  scheme  of  parallelism  is  very  subtile  and  obscure,  and  must  be 
developed  by  art  and  ability  in  distinguishing  the  different  members 
of  the  sentences,  and  in  distributing  the  points,  rather  than  by  de- 
pending upon  the  obvious  construction.  How  much  this  principle 
pervades  the  Hebrew  poetry,  and  how  difficult  of  explication  it  is, 
may  in  some  degree  be  illustrated  by  one  example.  This  appears  to 
consist  of  a  single  line,  if  the  sentiment  only  be  considered  : 
"  Ego  vero  inunxi  regem  raeum  in  Sione  monte  meae  sanctitatis."48 

But  the  general  form  and  nature  of  the  psalm  requires  that  it  should 
be  divided  into  two  parts  or  versicles  ;  as  if  it  were, 

"  Ego  vero  inunxi  regem  meum  ; 

"  Inunxi  eum  in  Sione  monte  meae  sanctitatis." 

Which  indeed  the  Masorites  seem  to  have  perceived  in  this  as  well 
as  in  other  places.49 

In  this  peculiar  conformation,  or  parallelism  of  the  sentences,  I 
apprehend  a  considerable  part  of  the  Hebrew  metre  to  consist  ; 
though  it  is  not  improbable  that  some  regard  was  also  paid  to  the 
numbers  and  feet.  But  of  this  particular  we  have  at  present  so  little 
information,  that  it  is  utterly  impossible  to  determine,  whether  it 
were  modulated  by  the  ear  alone,  or  according  to  any  settled  or  de- 
finite rules  of  prosody.  Since  however  this,  and  other  marks  or  ves- 
tiges, as  it  were,  of  the  metrical  art  are  alike  extant  in  the  writings 
of  the  prophets,  and  in  the  books  which  are  commonly  allowed  to 
be  poetical,  I  think  there  is  sufficient  reason  to  rank  them  in  the 
same  class. 

Lest  I  should  seem  to  have  attributed  too  much  to  this  confor- 

45  JOB  v.  19.        46  PSAL.  Ixii.  Ifc)  V     47  AMOS  i.  3,  etc.        48  pSALM  ii.  6, 


49  For  they  mark  the  word  "sVto  with  the  distinctive  accent  Athnach,  by 
which  they  generally  distinguish  the  members  of  the  distichs.  See  PSALM 
xvii.7.  xxxii.  3.  xxxiii.  14.  cii.  8.  cxvi.  1,  9,  12,  14,  15,  18.  cxxxvii.  2. 


LECT.  XIX.  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  165 

mation  of  the  sentences,  and  to  have  rashly  embraced  an  opinion 
not  supported  by  sufficient  authority,  I  shall  beg  leave  to  quote  to 
you  the  opinion  of  Azarias,  a  Jewish  Rabbi,  not  indeed  a  very  an- 
cient, but  a  very  approved  author.50  "  Without  doubt,"  says  he, 
"  the  sacred  songs  have  certain  measures  and  proportions,  but  these 
do  not  consist  in  the  number  of  the  syllables  perfect  or  imperfect, 
according  to  the  form  of  the  modern  verse ;  but  in  the  number  of 
things,  and  of  the  parts  of  things  ;  that  is,  the  subject  and  the  pre- 
dicate, and  their  adjuncts,  in  every  sentence  and  proposition." 
(Which  words  of  Azarias  are,  however,  to  be  understood  with  some 
limitation  ;  nor  are  they  to  be  literally  interpreted  according  to  their 
sense  in  logical  treatises,  for  he  proceeds,)  "  thus  a  phrase,  con- 
taining two  parts  of  a  proposition,  consists  of  two  measures :  add 
another  containing  four,  and  they  become  four  measures  :  another 
again  containing  three  parts  of  a  proposition,  consists  of  three  meas- 
ures ;  add  to  it  another  of  the  like,  and  you  have  six  measures :  for 
you  are  not  to  number  the  words  or  syllables,  but  the  sentences." 
For  instance,  "  Thy  right  hand,  O  JEHOVAH,"  according  to  Azarias, 
consists  of  two  terms,  or  parts  of  a  proposition ;  to  which  is  connec- 
ted, "  is  all  glorious  in  power,"  consisting  likewise  of  two  terms-;  these 
joined  together  make  a  tetrameter.  The  following  is  constructed 
on  a  similar  principle  : 

"  Dextra  tua,  o  lehova,  confregit  hostem."Sl 

Thus  in  the  following  propositions  there  are  three  terms  or  measures, 
"  Destillabit,  ut  pluvia,  doctrina  mea ;  fluet,  ut  ros,  mea  oratio  ;52 

And  thus  joined  together  they  form  an  hexameter.  In  fact, 
what  he  has  remarked  here  is  neither  groundless  nor  altogether  just. 
For  with  respect  to  many  passages,  in  which  the  distribution  of  the 
sentences  is  very  unequal,  and  in  which  the  propositions  have  but 
little  correspondence  with  each  other,  as  happens  frequently  in  the 
psalms,  we  must  have  recourse  to  some  other  solution ;  and  when  the 
sentences  are  most  regular  and  correct,  they  cannot  at  all  times  be 
reduced  to  his  rules.  But  although  the  present  question  does  not  de- 
pend upon  this  single  point,  no  man,  I  think,  who  reads  with  atten- 
tion the  poetic  books,  and  especially  what  may  be  properly  called 
the  prophetic  part  of  them,  will  entertain  a  doubt  that  it  is  of  the  ut- 
most importance  to  distinguish  the  system  of  the  verses. 

50  Mantissa  Dissert,  ad  Librura  COSRI,  p.  418. 

si  EXOD.  xv.  6  52  DEUT.  xxxii.  2. 


166  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XIX. 

But  should  all  that  has  been  remarked  concerning  the  mem- 
bers and  divisions  of  the  sentences  appear  light  and  trifling  to  some 
persons,  and  utterly  undeserving  any  labour  or  attention ;  let  them 
remember  that  nothing  can  be  of  greater  avail  to  the  proper  un- 
derstanding of  any  writer,  than  a  previous  acquaintance  with  both 
his  general  character,  and  the  peculiarities  of  his  style  and  man- 
ner of  writing  :  let  them  recollect  that  translators  and  commenta- 
tors have  fallen  into  errors  upon  no  account  more  frequently,  than 
for  want  of  attention  to  this  article  ;  and  indeed,  I  scarcely  know 
any  subject  which  promises  more  copiously  to  reward  the  labour  of 
such  as  are  studious  of  sacred  criticism,  than  this  one  in  particu- 
kr.(c) 


LECTURE    XX. 

THE  GENERAL  CHARACTERISTICS  OF    THE  PROPHETIC  POETRY. 

The  whole  of  the  book  of  Daniel,  as  well  as  of  Jonah,  are  to  be  excepted  as  not  poetical, 
though  of  the  prophetic  kind  ;  also  certain  historical  relations  inserted  in  the  books  of  the 
prophets— Some  poems  occur  in  the  prophetic  writings,  which  properly  belong  to  the  other 
classes  of  poetrv^-The  remainder  constitutes  what  may  be  termed  a  system  or  code  of  pro- 
phetic poetry— U^he  character  of  this  species  of  poetry  deduced  from  the  nature  and  design 
of  prophecy  itself— An  example  of  the  true  style  of  prophetic  poetry  produced  from  Isaiah, 
and  explained  :  also  another  from  the  prophecies  of  Balaam,  translated  into  Latin  vorse^J 

IN  the  two  last  lectures  I  endeavoured  to<  explain  upon  what  rea- 
sons I  was  induced  to  class  the  predictions  of  the  prophets  among 
the  poetical  productions  of  the  Hebrews.  I  speak  not  of  all,  but 
the  greater  part  of  the  prophetic  writings  :  for  there  are  among  them 
parts  which  are  not  prophetic,  and  even  among  those  which  are, 
there  are  some  passages  not  poetical.  I  except,  in  the  first  place, 
those  narrations  plainly  historical,  relating  to  the  facts  which  gave 
occasion  to  the  prophecies,  and  which  serve  to  introduce,  to  explain, 
and  illustrate  them  :  some  of  this  kind  occur  in  Isaiah,  and  in  Jere- 
miah many  more.  The  whole  of  what  is  called  the  prophecy  of  Jo- 
nah is  the  bare  recital  of  a  fact,  and  contains  nothing  of  poetry  but 
the  prayer  of  the  prophet,  which  is  an  ode.  Some  of  the  prophecies 
themselves  must  also  be  excepted,  which  are  indeed  sublime  and  im- 
portant as  to  the  matter,  but  not  at  all  poetical  as  to  the  style  and 
metrical  structure  :  of  this  kind  many  passages  occur  in  Ezekiel ; 
who  frequently  appears  more  of  the  orator  than  the  poet.  The  whole 
book  of  Daniel  too,  being  no  more  than  a  plain  relation  of  facts  part- 
ly past  and  partly  future,  must  be  excluded  from  the  class  of  poetic- 
al prophecy.  Much  I  confess  of  the  parabolic  imagery  is  introduced 
in  that  book,  but  the  author  introduces  it  as  a  prophet  only  ;  as 
visionary  and  allegorical  symbols  of  objects  and  events,  totally 
untinctured  with  the  true  poetical  colouring.  The  Jews,  indeed, 
would  refuse  to  Daniel  even  the  character  of  a  prophet,  but 
the  arguments  under  which  they  shelter  this  opinion  are  very 
futile :  for  those  points  which  they  maintain,  concerning  the  con- 
ditions, on  which  the  gift  of  prophecy  is  imparted ;  the  differ- 


168  GENERAL  CHARACTERISTICS  L.ECT.  XX. 

ent  gradations,  and  the  discrimination  between  the  true  prophecy 
and  mere  inspiration  ;  are  all  trifling  and  absurd,  without  any  foun- 
dation in  the  nature  of  things,  and  totally  destitute  of  scriptural  au- 
thority.1^) They  add,  that  Daniel  was  neither  originally  educated 
in  the  prophetic  discipline  and  precepts,  nor  afterwards  lived  confor- 
mably to  the  manner  of  the  prophets.  I  do  not,  however,  compre- 
hend how  this  can  diminish  his  claim  to  a  divine  mission  and  inspi- 
ration ;  it  may  possibly  enable  us,  indeed,  to  assign  a  reason  for  the 
dissimilarity  between  the  style  of  Daniel  and  that  of  the  other  proph- 
ets, and  for  its  possessing  so  little  of  the  diction  and  character  of 
poetry,  which  the  rest  seem  to  have  imbibed  in  common  from  the 
schools  and  discipline  in  which  they  were  educated. (B) 

There  occur,  moreover,  in  the  writings  of  the  prophets,  certain 
passages,  which,  although  poetical,  yet  do  not  properly  belong  to 
this  species  of  poetry.  I  allude  to  some  instances  in  Isaiah,  Hab- 
bakuk,  and  Ezekiel,  which  appear  to  constitute  complete  poems  of 
different  kinds,  odes  as  well  as  elegies.  These  also  being  excepted, 
all  the  other  predictions  of  the  prophets  (including  such  as  are  extant 
in  the  historical  books,  most  of  which  have  been  occasionally  quoted 
in  the  course  of  these  lectures,)  form  a  whole,  and  constitute  that  par- 
ticular species  of  poetry,  which  I  distinguish  by  the  appellation  of 
prophetic.  I  shall  now  endeavour,  in  the  first  place,  to  offer  to  your 
consideration  such  a  description  of  this  species  of  poetry,  as  may 
serve  to  distinguish  it  from  the  rest ;  and  afterwards  to  delineate 
the  peculiar  character  of  each  of  the  prophets,  as  far  as  may  be  con- 
sistent with  the  object  of  these  lectures. 

The  genius  of  the  prophetic  poetry  is  to  be  explored  by  a  due  at- 
tention to  the  nature  and  design  of  prophecy  itself.  The  immedi- 
ate design  of  all  prophecy  is  to  inform  or  amend  those  generations 
that  precede  the  events  predicted,  and  it  is  usually  calculated  either 
to  excite  their  fears  and  apprehensions,  or  to  afford  them  consola- 
tion. The  means  which  it  employs  for  the  accomplishment  of  these 
effects,  are  a  general  amplification  of  the  subject,  whether  it  be  of 
the  menacing  or  consolatory  kind,  copious  descriptions,  diversified, 
pompous,  and  sublime  ;  in  this  also  it  necessarily  avoids  too  great  a 
degree  of  exactness,  and  too  formal  a  display  of  the  minuter  circum- 
stances ;  rather  employing  a  vague  and  general  style  of  description, 
expressive  only  of  the  nature  and  magnitude  of  the  subject :  for 
prophecy  in  its  very  nature  implies  some  degree  of  obscurity,  and  is 

1  See  MAIMON.  More  Neboc.  ii.  45. 


LECT.  XX.  OP  THE  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  169 

always,  as  the  apostle  elegantly  expresses  it,  "  like  a  light  glimmer- 
ing in  a  dark  place,  until  the  day  dawn,  and  the  day-star  arise."2 
But  there  is  also  a  further  use  and  intention  of  prophecy,  which  re- 
gards those  who  live  after  the  prediction  is  accomplished,  and  that 
is,  the  demonstration  and  attestation  which  it  affords  of  the  divine 
veracity  :  this  evidently  appears  to  demand  a  different  form  of  enun- 
ciation ;  for  correct  language,  apt  imagery,  and  an  exact  display  of 
circumstances,  are  peculiarly  adapted  to  this  purpose.  Since,  how- 
ever, a  very  plain  description  would  totally  withdraw  the  veil  of  ob- 
scurity, a  more  sparing  use  of  this  liberty  of  particularizing  is  fre- 
quently adequate  to  that  purpose  ;  for  the  particular  notification  of 
one  or  two  circumstances,  united  with  a  general  propriety  in  the 
imagery,  the  proper  adaptation  of  which  shall  appear  after  the  event, 
will  afford  an  accumulation  of  evidence  that  cannot  be  withstood,  as 
might  be  demonstrated  in  a  number  of  instances.3  The  prophetic 
style,  therefore,  is  chiefly  constructed  on  the  former  principle  ;  that 
is,  it  commonly  prefers  a  general  mode  of  amplifying  and  elevating 
the  subject,  rarely  and  cautiously  descending  to  a  circumstantial"  de- 
tail.(c) 

There  is  also  another  particular,  which  must  not  be  omitted. 
Prophecy  frequently  takes  in,  at  a  single  glance,  a  variety  of  events, 
distinct  both  in  nature  and  time,  and  pursues  the  extreme  and  prin- 
cipal design  through  all  its  different  gradations.  From  this  cause 
also  it  principally  employs  general  ideas,  and  expresses  them  by  im- 
agery of  established  use  and  acceptation,  for  these  are  equally  capa- 
ble of  comprehending  the  general  scope  of  the  divine  counsels, 
and  of  accompanying  the  particular  progressions  of  circumstances, 
situations,  and  events ;  they  may  be  easily  applied  to  the  intermedi- 
ate relations  and  ends,  but  must  be  more  accurately  weighed  and 
proportioned  to  equal  the  magnitude  and  importance  of  the  ultimate 
design. 

If  such  be  the  genius  of  prophecy ;  if  it  be  chiefly  employed  in 
describing  only  the  exterior  lineaments  of  events,  and  in  depicting 
and  embellishing  general  effects  ;  it  will  not  be  difficult  to  under- 
stand with  how  much  advantage  it  may  make  use  of  the  assistance 
and  ministration  of  poetry,  and  in  particular  of  the  parabolic  style  ; 
the  nature  of  which,  as  I  have  already  copiously  stated,  is  toTaltbrd 
an  abundance  and  variety  of  imagery  of  established  use  and  accep- 
tation, from  which  every  subject  may  receive  the  most  ample  and 

2  2  PET.  ii.  9.  3  See  Lect.  IX.  conclusion. 


170  GENERAL  CHARACTERISTICS  L.ECT.    XX. 

the  most  proper  embellishments.     Hence  too  we  may  easily  collect 
the  peculiar  character  of  the  poetry. 

This  species  of  poetry  is  more  ornamented,  more  splendid,  and 
more  florid  than  any  other.  It  abounds  more  in  imagery,  at  least 
*  in  that  species  of  imagery  which,  in  the  parabolic  style,  is  of  com- 
mon and  established  acceptation,  and  which,  by  means  of  a  settled 
analogy  always  preserved,  is  transferred  from  certain  and  definite  ob- 
jects to  express  indefinite  and  general  ideas.  Of  all  the  images 
proper  to  the  parabolic  style,  it  most  frequently  introduces  those 
which  are  taken  from  natural  objects  and  from  sacred  history  :  it 
abounds  most  in  metaphors,  allegories,  comparisons,  and  even  in 
copious  and  diffuse  descriptions.  It  possesses  all  that  genuine  en- 
thusiasm, which  is  the  natural  attendant  on  inspiration  ;  it  excels 
in  the  brightness  of  imagination  and  in  clearness  and  energy  of  dic- 
tion, and  consequently  rises  to  an  uncommon  pitch  of  sublimity  : 
hence  also  it  often  is  very  happy  in  the  expression  and  delineation  of 
the  passions,  though  more  commonly  employed  in  the  exciting  of 
them  ;  this  indeed  is  its  immediate  object,  over  this  it  presides  as 
its  peculiar  province. 

In  respect  to  the  order,  disposition,  and  symmetry  of  a  perfect 
poem  of  the  prophetic  kind,  I  do  not  know  of  any  certain  definition, 
which  will  admit  of  general  application.  Naturally  free,  and  of  too 
ardent  a  spirit  to  be  confined  by  rule,  it  is  usually  guided  by  the 
nature  of  the  subject  only,  and  the  impulse  of  divine  inspiration. 
There  are  not  wanting,  it  is  true,  instances  of  great  elegance  and 
perfection  in  these  particulars.  Among  the  shorter  prophecies  I 
need  only  mention  those  of  Balaam,  each  of  which  is  possessed  of  a 
certain  accuracy  of  arrangement  and  symmetry  of  form  ;  they  open 
with  an  elegant  exordium,  they  proceed  with  a  methodical  continu- 
ation of  the  subject,  and  are  wound  up  with  a  full  and  graceful  con- 
clusion. There  are  many  similar  instances  in  the  books  of  the 
prophets,  and  particularly  in  Isaiah,  which  deserve  the  highest  com- 
mendation, and  may  with  propriety  be  classed  with  the  most  perfect 
and  regular  specimens  of  poetry.  I  shall  select  for  your  considera- 
tion one  example  from  that  most  accomplished  writer,  which  is  em- 
bellished with  all  the  most  striking  ornaments  of  poetry :  from  this 
instance  I  shall  not  only  demonstrate  with  what  accuracy  the  pro- 
phetic Muse  sometimes  preserves  the  proper  order  and  arrangement 
of  the  parts  and  circumstances  ;  but  I  shall  be  enabled,  at  the  same 
time,  to  illustrate  most  of  these  positions,  which  I  have  now  laid 


LECT.  XX.  OP  THE  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  171 

down,  concerning  the  nature  and  genius  of  prophetic  poetry.  Such 
an  illustration  will  probably  be  not  unnecessary ;  since  it  is  to  be  ap- 
prehended, that  what  has  been  remarked  only  in  general  terms  upon 
so  subtile  and  difficult  a  subject,  may,  without  the  aid  of  example, 
appear  not  a  little  perplexed  and  obscure. 

The  thirty-fourth  and  thirty-fifth  chapters  of  Isaiah  contain  a  re- 
markable prophecy.  It  is  a  simple,  regular,  and  perfect  poem,  con- 
sisting of  two  parts  according  to  the  nature  of  the  subject,  which, 
as  to  its  general  properties,  is  explained  with  the  utmost  perspicuity. 
The  first  part  of  the  prophecy  contains  a  denunciation  of  extraordi- 
nary punishment,  indeed  nothing  short  of  total  destruction  against 
the  enemies  of  the  church  of  God ;  and  afterwards,  in  consequence 
of  this  event,  a  full  and  complete  restoration  is  promised  to  the 
church  itself.  The  prophet  introduces  the  subject  by  a  magnificent 
exordium,  invoking  universal  nature  to  the  observation  of  these 
events,  in  which  the  whole  world  should  seem  to  be  interested  : 

"  Accedite,  gentes,  ad  audiendum ; 
"  Et  populi,  animum  advertite  : 
"  Audiat  tellus,  et  plenitudo  eius ; 
"  Orbis,  et  omnis  eius  propago."4 

He  then  publishes  the  decree  of  JEHOVAH  concerning  the  extirpa- 
tion of  all  those  nations  against  whom  "  his  wrath  is  kindled  :"  and 
he  amplifies  this  act  of  vengeance  and  destruction  by  an  admirable 
selection  of  splendid  imagery,  all  of  which  is  of  the  same  kind  with 
that  which  is  made  use  of  by  the  prophets  upon  similar  occasions  ; 
the  nature  of  which  is  to  exaggerate  the  force,  the  magnitude,  atroci- 
ty, and  importance  of  the  impending  visitation  ;  whilst  nothing  de- 
terminate is  specified  concerning  the  manner,  the  time,  the  place, 
or  other  minute  circumstances.  He  first  exhibits  that  truly  martial 
picture  of  slaughter  and  destruction  after  a  victory  : 

"  Occisi  eorum  proiicientur  ; 

"  Ex  cadaveribus  ascendet  foetor ; 

"  Montesque  eorum  sanguine  colliquescent."5 

He  takes  a  bolder  flight,  and  illustrates  his  description  by  imagery 
borrowed  from  the  Mosaic  chaos  (which  is  a  common  source  of  fig- 
urative language  on  these  occasions,  and  is  appropriated  to  the  ex- 
pression of  the  downfal  of  nations  ;)  and,  as  if  he  were  displaying 
the  total  subversion  of  the  universe  itself : 

"  Et  contabescet  omnis  coelorum  excercitus ; 

4  Chap,  xxxiv.  1.  5  Ver.  3. 


172  GENERAL  CHARACTERISTICS  L.ECT.  XX. 

41  Coeli  ipsi  instar  schedulae  convolventur : 
"  Et  omnis  eorum  excercitus  decidet ; 
"  Sicut  cassa  de  vite  folia, 
11  Vtque  marcida  ex  arbore  sua  ficus."6 

A  different  image  is  immediate!;*  introduced  ;  a  solemn  sacrifice  is 
celebrated,  and  an  uncommon  number  of  victims  is  displayed  : 
JEHOVAH  himself  takes  a  part  in  *his  magnificent  scene,  and  every 
circumstance  is  brought  directly  before  our  eyes  : 

"  Nam  inebriatus  est  in  coelis  gladius  meus ; 

"  Ecce  in  Idumaeam  descendet, 

"  In  populum  a  me  lustre  internecioni  devotum. 

"  Gladius  lehovae  satiatus  est  sanguine, 

"  Pinguefactus  adipe ; 

"  Sanguine  agnorum  et  liircorum, 

tl  Adipe  ex  renibus  arietum  : 

"  Siquidem  lehovae  sacrificium  est  Botsrae, 

"  Et  ingens  mactatio  in  terra  Idumaeorum."7 

The  goats,  the  rams,  the  bulls,  the  flocks,  and  other  animals,  which 
are  mentioned  in  this  passage  and  those  which  follow,  are  common- 
ly used  by  the  prophets  to  denote  the  haughty,  ferocious,  and  inso- 
lent tyrants  and  chiefs  of  those  nations,  which  were  inimical  to 
God.  On  the  same  principle  we  may  explain  the  allusion  to  Botzra 
and  Idumea,  a  city  and  nation  in  the  highest  degree  obnoxious  to 
the  people  of  God.  These,  however,  the  prophecy  seems  only  slight- 
ly or  cursorily  to  glance  at :  the  phraseology  is  indeed  of  that  kind 
which  expresses  generals  by  particulars  ;  or  consists,  as  I  formerly 
remarked,  of  a  figure  taken  from  a  determinate  and  definite  object, 
and  by  analogy  applied  in  a  more  extensive  sense  ;  in  which  respect 
the  very  words  which  are  made  use  of,  have  in  this  place  a  peculiar 
form  and  propriety.8  But  the  same  circumstance  is  again  described 
by  a  succession  of  new  and  splendid  images  borrowed  from  the  over- 
throw of  Sodom,  which,  as  was  formerly  demonstrated,  may  be  ter- 
med one  of  the  common-places  of  the  inspired  poets  : 

"  Agitur  enim  dies  ultionis  lehovae  ; 

"  Annus  poenarum  sumendarum  Sionis  vindici : 

"  Et  vertentur  torrentes  eius  in  picem, 

"  Pulvisque  eius  in  sulphur  ; 

"  Et  terra  eius  in  ardentem  picem  tota  redigetur  : 
$  "  Noctes  diesque  inextincta  ardebit ; 

"  Fumus  eius  in  aeternum  ascendet : 

6  Ver.  4.  7  Ver.  5,  6. 

8  See  LOWTH  and  VJTRINGA  on  the  place,  and  on  chap.  Ixiii.  1. 


LECT.  XX.  OF  THE  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  173 

"  In  perpetuas  aetates  iacebit  deserta; 

"  Per  infinita  saecula  nemo  earn  peragrabit."9 

Lastly,  the  same  event  is  prefigured  under  the  image  of  a  vast  and 
solitary  desert,  to  which,  according  to  the  divine  decree,  that  region 
is  devoted.10  This  description  the  prophet  afterwards  improves,  di- 
versifies, and  enlarges,  by  the  addition  of  several  important  circum- 
stances, all  which,  however,  have  a  certain  analogy  or  connexion 
with  each  other. 

The  other  part  of  the  poem  is  constructed  upon  similar  principles, 
and  exhibits  a  beautiful  contrast  to  the  preceding  scene.  The  im- 
agery possesses  every  possible  advantage  of  ornament  and  variety  ; 
it  is,  like  the  former,  altogether  of  a  general  kind,  and  of  extensive 
application ;  but  the  meaning  is  plain  and  perspicuous.  Many  of 
the  preceding  images  are  taken  from  the  sacred  history ;  the  follow- 
ing are  almost  entirely  from  the  objects  of  nature : 

Laetabuntur  deserta  et  inculta  j 

Et  exultabit  solitude  et  florebit,  ut  rosa  : 

Eximie  florebit  et  exultabit ; 

Etiam  cum  iubilatione  et  cantu  : 

Dabitur  ei  Libani  gloria ; 
1  Decor  Carmeli  et  Saronis  : 
'  Hi  videbunt  gloriam  lehovae  ; 

Dei  nostri  maiestatem."]l 

I  formerly  remarked  the  extensive  application  of  Lebanon  and  Car- 
mel  in  a  figurative  sense,  and  that  they  are  sometimes  expressive 
even  of  the  divine  glory  and  majesty.12  The  cultivation  and  water- 
ing of  a  barren  and  rocky  soil  is  so  frequently,  I  might  say  invaria- 
bly, in  the  parabolic  style,  employed  to  denote  the  divine  grace.and 
spiritual  endowments,  that  there  is  no  necessity  for  any  further  ex- 
planation of  this  symbol ;  nor  is  the  succeeding  imagery,  which, 
according  to  a  similar  analogy,  seems  to  illustrate  the  same  event, 
less  clear  and  perspicuous. 

To  him  who  attentively  reads  and  considers  the  whole  poem, 
the  order  and  arrangement  of  the  subject  will  be  more  fully  apparent. 
The  passages  which  I  have  noted  will,  however,  I  apprehend,  be 
sufficient  to  demonstrate  the  species  of  imagery,  the  style,  and  col- 
ours most  congenial  to  the  prophetic  Muse  ;  they  will  also,  I  flatter 
myself,  be  sufficient  in  some  measure  to  explain  the  manner  in 

9  Ver.  8,  9, 10.  10  Ver.  11—16. 

"  Chap.  xxxv.  1.  2.  12  See  Lect.  VI.  and  VIII. 


174  GENERAL  CHARACTERISTICS  LiECT.  XX. 

which  she  contrives  to  display,  in  the  strongest  colours,  the  general 
nature,  magnitude,  and  importance  of  events ;  and  at  the  same  time 
to  leave  the  particular  situations,  the  intermediate  gradations,  and 
all  the  minuter  circumstances,  concealed  under  the  bold  and  promi- 
nent features  of  the  description,  till  the  accomplishment  of  the  pre- 
diction. There  are  indeed  one  or  two  passages  in  this  prophecy, 
which  would  serve  to  illustrate  this  position  ;13  in  the  rest  the  cir- 
cumstances and  progress  of  the  particular  events  are  not  yet  unfold- 
ed ;  for  this  prophecy  is  evidently  one  of  those  which  are  not  yet 
completely  fulfilled,  and  of  which  the  greater  part  at  least  is  yet  de- 
posited in  the  secret  counsels  of  the  Most  High.(D) 

That  I  may  not,  however,  conclude  this  lecture  without  exhibit- 
ing the  form  of  some  prophetic  poem  complete  in  all  parts,  I  have 
selected  for  this  purpose  one  of  the  prophecies  of  Balaam,  which  I 
so  lately  mentioned,  and  which  in  the  course  of  these  lectures  have 
more  than  once  deservedly  attracted  our  attention  :  for  indeed  I  do 
not  know  that  the  whole  scope  of  the  Hebrew  poetry  contains  any 
thing  more  exquisite  or  perfect.  This,  which  is  at  present  under 
our  consideration,  abounds  in  gay  and  splendid  imagery  copied  im- 
mediately from  the  tablet  of  nature  ;  and  is  chiefly  conspicuous  for 
the  glowing  elegance  of  the  style,  and  the  form  and  diversity  of  the 
figures.  Though  every  attempt  to  display  the  beauties  of  the  He- 
brew imagery  in  the  poetry  of  another  language,  must  fall  greatly 
short  of  the  design,  it  will  yet  give  a  little  variety  to  our  studies,  to 
intersperse  them  occasionally  with  modern  verse.  On  these  occa- 
sions, as  indeed  on  every  other,  I  must  rely  upon  the  candour  of  this 
audience  to  accept  in  good  part  the  willing  tribute  of  my  faint  en- 
deavours.14 

Tuis,  lacobe,  quantus  est  castris  decor  ! 
Tuisque  signis  Israel ! 

Vt  rigua  vallis  fertilem  pandens  sinum ; 
Horti  ut  scatentes  rivulis ; 

Sacris  Edenae  costi  ut  in  sylvis  virent, 
Cedrique  propter  flumina. 

Illi  uda  moto  rore  stillant  germina, 
Foetusque  alunt  iuges  aquae. 

Sancti  usque  fines  promovebit  imperi 
Rex  usque  victor  hostium. 

Ilium  subacto  duxit  ab  Nilo  Deus, 
Novis  superbum  viribus, 

13  See  Chap.  xxxv.  4, 5,  6,  8.  14  See  NUMB.  xxiv.  5—9. 


LECT.  XX.  OP  THE  PROPHETIC  POETRY.  175 

Quails  remotis  liber  in  iugis  oryx 

Fert  celsa  coelo  cornua. 
Vorabit  hostes  ;  ossa  franget ;  irritas 

Lacerabit  hastas  dentibus. 
Vt  leo,  recumbit ;  ut  leaena,  decubat ; 

Quis  audeat  lacessere  ? 
Quae  quisque  tibi  precabitur,  ferat  bona*  1 

Mala  quae  precabitur,  luat ! 


LECTURE  XXI. 


THE  PECULIAR  CHARACTER  OF  EACH  OF  THE  PROPHETS. 


•1 


The  particular  style  and  character  of  the  different  prophets  ;  what  parts  of  each  of  them 
poetical,  and  what  otherwise — Nothing  deserving  of  notice  of  this  kind  in  the  poetry  of 
Greece— In  the  Latin  poetry  the  fourth  Eclogue  of  Virgil  is  remarkable;  that  poem  much 
more  obscure  than  it  is  generally  accounted,  and  has  not  hitherto  been  properly  explained. 

"  THE  prophets  have  each  their  peculiar  character,"  says  Jerome, 
speaking  of  the  twelve  minor  prophets.1  The  same  however  might 
more  properly  be  affirmed  with  respect  to  the  three  greater  :  for 
Isaiah  is  extremely  different  from  Jeremiah ;  nor  is  it  easy  to  con- 
ceive any  composition  of  the  same  denomination  more  dissimilar  to 
both  of  them  than  the  book  of  Ezekiel. 

Isaiah,  the  first  of  the  prophets,  both  in  order  and  dignity,  a- 
bounds  in  such  transcendant  excellencies,  that  he  may  be  properly 
said  to  afford  the  most  perfect  model  of  the  prophetic  poetry.  He 
is  at  once  elegant  and  sublime,  forcible  and  ornamented ;  he  unites 
energy  with  copiousness,  and  dignity  with  variety.  In  his  senti- 
ments there  is  uncommon  elevation  and  majesty ;  in  his  imagery 
the  utmost  propriety,  elegance,  dignity,  and  diversity ;  in  his  lan- 
guage uncommon  beauty  and  energy  ;  and,  notwithstanding  the  ob- 
scurity of  his  subjects,  a  surprising  degree  of  clearness  and  simplici- 
ty. To  these  we  may  add,  there  is  such  sweetness  in  the  poetical 
composition  of  his  sentences,  whether  it  proceed  from  art  or  genius, 
that  if  the  Hebrew  poetry  at  present  is  possessed  of  any  remains  of 
its  native  grace  and  harmony,  we  shall  chiefly  find  them  in  the  writ- 
ings of  Isaiah  :  so  that  the  saying  of  Ezekiel  may  most  justly  be  ap- 
plied to  this  prophet : 

u  Tu  omnibus  numeris  absolutum  es  exemplar, 
"  Plenus  sapientia,  et  perfectus  pulchritudine."2 

Isaiah  greatly  excels  too  in  all  the  graces  of  method,  order,  connex- 
ion, and  arrangement :  though  in  asserting  this  we  must  not  forget 
the  nature  of  the  prophetic  impulse,  which  bears  away  the  mind 

l  Praef.  in  XII.  Proph.  2  EZEK.  xxviii.  12. 


XXI.  THE  PECULIAR  CHARACTER,  ETC.,  _  ^177 

_____ 

with  irresistible  violence,  and  frequently  in  rapid  transitions  from 
near  to  remote  objects,  from  human  to  divine  :  we  must  also  be  care.- 
ful  in  remarking  the  limits  of  particular  predictions,  since,  as  they  are 
now  extant,  they  are  often  improperly  connected,  without  any  marks 
of  discrimination,  which  injudicious  arrangement,  on  some  occasions, 
creates  almost  insuperable  difficulties.  I  lately  produced  a  speci- 
men from  this  prophet  of  a  complete  poem  disposed  in  the  most  per- 
spicuous order  ;  and  in  the  former  part  of  this  volume  many  instances 
may  be  found  where  the  particular  predictions  are  distinctly  marked. 
The  latter  part,  which  I  suppose  to  commence  at  the  fortieth  chap- 
ter, is  perhaps  the  most  elegant  specimen  remaining  of  inspired  com- 
position, and  yet  in  this  respect  is  attended  with  considerable  diffi- 
culty. It  is,  in  fact,  a  body  or  collection  of  different  prophecies7"\ 
nearly  allied  to  each  other  as  to  the  subject,  which,  for  that  reason, 
having  a  sort  of  connexion,  are  not  to  be  separated  but  with  the  ut- 
most difficulty.  The  general  subject  is  the  restoration  of  the  church. 
Its  deliverance  from  captivity  ;  the  destruction  of  idolatry  ;  the  vin- 
dication of  the  divine  power  and  truth  ;  the  consolation  of  the  Israel- 
ites, the  divine  invitation  which  is  extended  to  them,  their  incredu- 
lity, impiety,  and  rejection  ;  the  calling  in  of  the  Gentiles ;  the  res- 
toration of  the  chosen  people  ;  the  glory  and  felicity  of  the  church 
in  its  perfect  state ;  and  the  ultimate  destruction  of  the  wicked,  are 
all  set  forth  with  a  sufficient  respect  to  order  and  method.  If  we 
read  these  passages  with  attention,  and  duly  regard  the  nature  and 
genius  of  the  mj^sjtical^allegory,  as  explained  in  the  eleventh  Lecture; 
at  the  same  time  remembering,  that  all  these  points  have  been  fre- 
quently touched  upon  in  other  prophecies  promulged  at  different 
times,  we  shall  neither  find  any  iregularity  in  the  arrangement  of 
the  whole,  nor  any  want  of  order  and  connexion  as  to  matter  or 
sentiment  in  the  different  parts.  I  must  add,  that  I  esteem  the 
whole  book  of  Isaiah  to  be  poetical,  a  few  passages  excepted,  which, 
if  brought  together,  would  not  at  most  exceed  the  bulk  of  five  or  six 
chapters. 

Jeremiah,  though  deficient  neither  in  elegance  nor  sublimity,  must 
give  place  in  both  to  Isaiah.  Jerome3  seems  to  object  against  him 
a  sort  of  rusticity  of  language,  no  vestige  of  which,  I  must  however 
confess,  I  have  been  able  to  discover.  His  sentiments,  it  is  true,  are 
not  always  the  most  elevated,  nor  are  his  periods  always  neat  and 

3  Pref.  in  Jer. 

23 


178  THE  PECULIAR  CHARACTER  L.ECT.  XXI. 


compact :  but  these  are  faults  common  to  those  writers,  whose  princi- 
pal aim  is  to  excite  the  gentler  affections,  and  to  call  forth  the  tear 
of  sympathy  or  sorrow.  This  observation  is  very  strongly  exemplifi- 
ed in  the  Lamentations,  where  these  are  the  prevailing  passions  ;  it  is 
however  frequently  instanced  in  the  prophecies  of  this  author,  and 
most  of  all  in  the  beginning  of  the  book,4  which  is  chiefly  poetical. 
The  middle  of  it  is  almost  entirely  historical.  The  latter  part,  again, 
consisting  of  the  six  last  chapters,  is  altogether  poetical  ;5  it  contains 
several  different  predictions,  which  are  distinctly  marked,  and  in 
these  the  prophet  approaches  very  near  the  sublimity  of  Isaiah. 
On  the  whole,  however,  I  can  carcely  pronounce  above  half  the  book 
of  Jeremiah  poetical. (A) 

Ezekiel  is  much  inferior  to  Jeremiah  in  elegance ;  in  sublimity 
he  is  not  even  excelled  by  Isaiah  :  but  his  sublimity  is  of  a  totally  dif- 
ferent kind.  He  is  deep,  vehement,  tragical ;  the  only  sensation  he 
affects  to  excite,  is  the  terrible :  his  sentiments  are  elevated,  fervid, 
full  of  fire,  indignant ;  his  imagery  is  crowded,  magnificent,  terrific, 
sometimes  almost  to  disgust;  his  language  is  pompous,  solemn, 
austere,  rough,  and  at  times  unpolished :  he  employs  frequent 
repetitions,  not  for  the  sake  of  grace  or  elegance,  but  from  the  ve- 
hemence of  passion  and  indignation.  Whatever  subject  he  treats 
of,  that  he  sedulously  pursues,  from  that  he  rarely  departs,  but 
cleaves  as  it  were  to  it ;  whence  the  connexion  is  in  general  evi- 
dent and  well  preserved.  In  many  respects  he  is  perhaps  excel- 
led by  the  other  prophets :  but  in  that  species  of  composition  to 
which  he  seems  by  nature  adapted,  the  forcible,  the  impetuous,  the 
great  and  solemn,  not  one  of  the  sacred  writers  is  superior  to  him. 
His  diction  is  sufficiently  perspicuous,  all  his  obscurity  consists  in 
the  nature  of  the  subject.  Visions  (as  for  instance,  among  others, 
those  of  Hosea,  Amos,  and  Jeremiah)  are  necessarily  dark  and  con- 
fused. The  greater  part  of  Ezekiel,  towards  the  middle  of  the 
book  especially,  is  poetical,  whether  we  regard  the  matter  or  the 
diction.  His  periods,  however,  are  frequently  so  rude  and  incom- 
pact, that  I  am  often  at  a  loss  how  to  pronounce  concerning  his  per- 
formance in  this  respect.(B) 

Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  and  Ezekiel,  as  far  as  relates  to  style,  may  be 

4  See  the  whole  of  chap.  ix.  chap.  xiv.  17,  etc.  xx.  14 — 18. 

5  Chap.  xlvi. — li.  to  ver.59.  chap.  Hi.  properly  belongs  to  the  Lamentations, 
to  which  it  serves  as  an  exordium. 


LECT.  XXI.  OF  THE  DIFFERENT  PROPHETS.  170 


said  to  hold  the  same  rank  among  the  Hebrews,  as  Homer,  Simoni- 
des,  and  ^Eschylus  among  the  Greeks. 

Hosea  is  the  first  in  order  of  the  minor  prophets,  and  is,  perhaps, 
Jonah  excepted,  the  most  ancient  of  them  all.  His  style  exhibits 
the  appearance  of  very  remote  antiquity ;  it  is  pointed,  energetic, 
and  concise.  It  bears  a  distinguished  mark  of  poetical  composition, 
in  that  pristine  brevity  and  condensation,  which  is  observable  in  the 
sentences,  and  which  later  writers  have  in  some  measure  neglect- 
ed. This  peculiarity  has  not  escaped  the  observation  of  Jerome : 
"  He  is  altogether,"  says  he,  speaking  of  this  prophet,  "  laconic 'and 
sententious.6  But  this  very  circumstance,  which  anciently  was  sup- 
posed, no  doubt,  to  impart  uncommon  force  and  elegance,  in  the 
present  ruinous  state  of  the  Hebrew  literature,  is  productive  of  so 
much  obscurity,  that  although  the  general  subject  of  this  writer  be 
sufficiently  obvious,  he  is  the  most  difficult  and  perplexed  of  all  the 
prophets.  There  is,  however,  another  reason  for  the  obscurity  of 
his  style  :  Hosea  prophesied  during  the  reigns  of  the  four  kings  of 
Judah,  Uzziah,  Jotham,  Ahaz,  and  Hezekiah ;  the  duration  of  his 
ministry,  therefore,  in  whatever  manner  we  calculate,  must  include 
a  very  considerable  space  of  time  ;  we  have  now  only  a  small  volume 
of  his  remaining,  which,  it  seems,  contains  his  principal  prophecies ; 
and  these  are  extant  in  a  continued  series,  with  no  marks  of  distinc- 
tion as  to  the  times  in  which  they  were  published,  or  the  subjects 
of  which  they  treat.  There  is  therefore  no  cause  to  wonder,  if  in 
perusing  the  prophecies  of  Hosea,  we  sometimes  find  ourselves  in  a 
similar  predicament  with  those  who  consulted  the  scattered  leaves 
of  the  Sibyl. 

The  style  of  Joel  is  essentially  different  from  that  of  Hosea ;  but 
the  general  character  of  his  diction,  though  of  a  different  kind,  is 
not  less  poetical.  He  is  elegant,  perspicuous,  copious,  and  fluent ; 
he  is  also  sublime,  animated,  and  energetic.  In  the  first  and  sec- 
ond chapters  he  displays  the  full  force  of  the  prophetic  poetry,  and 
shows  how  naturally  it  inclines  to  the  use  of  metaphors,  allegories, 
and  comparisons.  Nor  is  the  connexion  of  the  matter  less  clear  and 
evident,  than  the  complexion  of  the  style :  this  is  exemplified  in  the 
display  of  the  impending  evils,  which  gave  rise  to  the  prophecy  ;  the 
exhortation  to  repentance ;  the  promises  of  happiness  and  success, 
both  terrestrial  and  eternal,  to  those  who  become  truly  penitent ;  the 

in  XII.  Proph. 


180  THE   PECULIAR    CHARACTER  L.ECT.  XXI. 


restoration  of  the  Israelites  ;  and  the  vengeance  to  be  taken  of  their 
adversaries.  But  while  we  allow  this  just  commendation  to  his  per- 
spicuity both  in  language  and  arrangement,  we  must  not  deny  that 
there  is  sometimes  great  obscurity  observable  in  his  subject,  and 
particularly  in  the  latter  part  of  the  prophecy. 

Jerome  calls  Amos  "  rude  in  speech,  but  not  in  knowledge  ;M 
applying  to  him  what  St.  Paul  modestly  professes  of  himself.7  Many 
have  followed  the  authority  of  Jerome,  in  speaking  of  this  prophet, 
as  if  he  were  indeed  quite  rude,  ineloquent,  and  destitute  of  all  the 
embellishments  of  composition.  The  matter  is,  however,  far  other- 
wise. Let  any  person  who  has  candour  and  perspicacity  enough  to 
judge,  not  from  the  man  but  from  his  writings,  open  the  volume  of 
his  predictions,  and  he  will,  I  think,  agree  with  me,  that  our  shep- 
herd "  is  not  a  whit  behind  the  very  chief  of  the  prophets."8  He 
will  agree,  that  as  in  sublimity  and  magnificence  he  is  almost  equal 
to  the  greatest,  so  in  splendour  of  diction,  and  elegance  of  expres- 
sion he  is  scarcely  inferior  to  any.  The  same  celestial  Spirit  indeed 
actuated  Isaiah  and  Daniel  in  the  court,  and  Amos  in  the  sheep- 
folds  ;  constantly  selecting  such  interpreters  of  the  divine  will  as 
were  best  adapted  to  the  occasion,  and  sometimes  "  from  the  mouth 
of  babes  and  sucklings  perfecting  praise  :"  occasionally  employing 
the  natural  eloquence  of  some,  and  occasionally  making  others  elo- 
quent. 

The  style  of  Micah  is  for  the  most  part  close,  forcible,  pointed, 
and  concise ;  sometimes  approaching  the  obscurity  of  Hosea ;  in 
many  parts  animated  and  sublime,  and  in  general  truly  poetical. 

None  of  the  minor  prophets,  however,  seem  to  equal  Nahum  in 
boldness,  ardour,  and  sublimity.  His  prophecy  too  forms  a  regular 
and  perfect  poem ;  the  exordium  is  not  merely  magnificent,  it  is 
truly  majestic ;  the  preparation  for  the  destruction  of  Nineveh,  and 
the  description  of  its  downfal  and  desolation,  are  expressed  in  the 
most  vivid  colours,  and  are  bold  and  luminous  in  the  highest  de- 
gree. 

The  style  of  Habakkuk  is  also  poetical ;  especially  in  his  ode, 
which  indeed  may  be  accounted  among  the  most  perfect  specimens 
of  that  class. (c)  The  like  remark  will  also  apply  to  Zephaniah; 
but  there  is  nothing  very  striking  or  uncommon  either  in  the  ar- 
rangement of  his  matter  or  the  complexion  of  his  style. 

7  Prooem.  Comment,  in  Amosi     2  COR.  xi.  6.-  8  2  COR.  xi.  5. 


LECT.  XXI.  OP  THE  DIFFERENT  PROPHETS.  181 

Of  Obadiah  there  is  little  to  be  said  ;  the  only  specimen  of  his 
genius  extant  being  very  short,  and  the  greater  part  of  it  included  in 
one  of  the  prophecies  of  Jeremiah.9  Jonah  and  Daniel,  I  have  al- 
ready considered  as  mere  historical  commentaries. 

Haggai,  Zechariah,  and  Malachi,  are  the  only  remaining  prophets. 
The  first  of  these  altogether  prosaic,  as  well  as  the  greater  part  of 
the  second  ;  towards  the  conclusion  of  the  prophecy  there  are  some 
poetical  passages,  and  those  highly  ornamented  ;  they  are  also  per- 
spicuous, considering  they  are  the  production  of  the  most  obscure 
of  all  the  prophetic  writers.10  The  last  of  the  prophetical  books, 
that  of  Malachi,  is  written  in  a  kind  of  middle  style,  which  seems  to 
indicate  that  the  Hebrew  poetry,  from  the  time  of  the  Babylonish 
captivity,  was  in  a  declining  state,  and  being  past  its  prime  and  vig- 
our, was  then  fast  verging  towards  the  debility  of  age. 

Thus  far  I  have  thought  proper  to  deliver  my  sentiments,  as 
distinctly  as  I  was  able,  concerning  the  writings  of  the  prophets,  and 
those  parts  which  are  to  be  accounted  poetical  or  otherwise.  This 
I  did  with  a  view  of  clearly  explaining  my  conjecture  (for  I  dare 
not  dignify  it  with  any  higher  appellation)  concerning  the  prophetic 
poetry.  A  conjecture,  which,  though  I  will  confess  it  is  not  with- 
out its  difficulties,  and  which  must,  after  all,  depend  in  some  degree 
upon  opinion,  yet  I  flatter  myself,  you  will  concur  with  me  in  admit- 
ting not  to  be  utterly  destitute  of  foundation. 

I  should  now,  according  to  the  nature  of  my  plan,  proceed  to 
speak  of  the  prophetic  poetry  of  the  Greeks,  if  indeed  any  thing  had 
been  transmitted  to  us,  even  from  their  most  celebrated  oracles,  de- 
serving, I  will  not  say,  to  be  compared  with  the  sacred  prophets, 
but  even  to  be  mentioned  at  all.  The  fact  is,  there  is  no  such  poem 
now  extant,  nor  do  I  believe  there  ever  was  one  of  that  kind  among 
the  Greeks  :  a  few  verses  there  are  indeed  remaining,  and  those  not 
above  mediocrity  ;  for  the  Pythian  Apollo,  if  we  may  credit  the 
Greeks  themselves,  was  not  always  upon  the  best  terms  with  the 
Muses.  It  appears,  therefore,  that  he  did  not  fail  to  excite  the  ridi- 
cule of  sensible  persons,  not  only  for  his  ambiguous  and  enigmatical 
divinations,  but  for  ignorance  in  the  art  of  versification  :  nay,  even 
the  rude  and  superstitious,  who  gave  him  the  amplest  credit  for  the 
veracity  of  his  predictions,  could  not  help  confessing,  that  he  was  a 
very  indifferent  poet.  (D) 

9  Compare  OB.  1—9.  with  JER.  xlix.  14,  15, 1C.  7,  9,  10. 
1°  See  chap.  ix.  x.  and  the  beginning  of  xi. 


182  THE  PECULIAR  CHARACTER  L.ECT.  XXI, 

Among  the  literature  of  the  Romans,  however,  there  is  extant 
a  much  celebrated,  and  indeed  admirable  poem  of  this  kind,  no  less 
remarkable  for  the  elegance  and  perspicuity  of  the   style,  than  for 
the  obscurity  and  darkness  of  the  subject :  I  speak  of  the  fourth  Ec- 
logue of  Virgil,  which  it  would  be  inexcusable  to  pass  unnoticed  in 
this  place,  since  from  the  first  ages  of  Christianity  an  opinion  has 
prevailed,  that  this  poem  bore  some  remote  relation  to  those  genu- 
ine remains  of  prophecy,  which  have  been  the  subject  of  this  Lec- 
ture, and  indeed  that  the  substance  of  it  was  originally  derived  from 
some  sacred   fountain.     The  manner  in  which  this  could  happen, 
I  must  confess,  is  not  very  easy  to  be  explained  :  whether  to  account 
for  the  fact  we  have  recourse  to  the  ancient  Greek  translation  of 
the  Scriptures,  the  publication  of  which  was  certainly  many  years 
anterior  to  the  Roman  poet ;  or  whether  we  suppose  that  the  author 
might  apply  to  those  translations,  which  were  made  from  the  sacred 
writings  by  some  Hellenistic  Jews,  and  which  were  handed  about 
as  the  prophecies  of  the  Sibyls.11     However  this  may  have  been, 
there  are  so  many,  and  so  manifest  indications  of  the  fact  in  the 
poem  itself,  that  no  person  who  reads  it  attentively  can  retain  a  doubt 
upon  this  head.     The  sentiments,  the  imagery,  even  the  language 
itself  has  so  direct  an  agreement  with  the  sacred  prophets ;  the  sub- 
ject has  so  much  of  intrinsic  sublimity  and  magnificence ;  and  on 
the  other  hand  it  is  enlivened  with  so  much  boldness  and  spirit,  is 
indeed  so  free  and  elevated,  that  considering  it  as  the  production  of 
the  chastest  and  most  reserved  of  all  the  later  poets,  there  is  some- 
thing altogether  mysterious  in  the  fact,  unless  we  suppose  that  he 
deduced  his  materials  from  some  higher  source  than  his  own  genius. 
Though  the  subject  has  engaged  the  attention  of  some  of  the  first 
literary  characters  in  the  world,  the  motive,  the  scheme,  the  inten- 
tion of  the  poet  still  remains,  and  I  fear  ever  will  remain,  undevelop- 
ed.    The  history  and  state  of  the  Roman  commonwealth  at  the  time 
point  out  no  circumstance  or  character,  which  appears  to  bear  a  suf- 
ficient relation  to  the  subject,  or  which  could  afford  room  for  such 
great  and  magnificent  predictions.     This  I  will  freely  confess,  that 
the  more  I  have  contemplated  this  extraordinary  production  in  this 
point  of  view,  the  less  able  I  have  felt  myself  to  comprehend  it. 
There  is  such  a  splendour  of  style,  such  an  elegance  in  the  versifi- 
cation, as  deceives  us  at  first  respecting  the  obscurity  of  the  matter. 

11  See  Bishop  CHANDLER'S  Vindication  of  the  Christian  Religion,  chap.  i. 
and  GROTIUS  on  MATTH.  ii  1. 


LECT.  XXI.  OF  THE  DIFFERENT  PROPHETS.  183 

But  on  a  nearer  inspection  of  each  particular,  on  a  thorough  exami- 
nation of  the  nature  and  the  force  of  the  imagery  and  diction,  so 
many  things  occur  totally  different  from  the  general  fashion  of  the 
Roman  authors,  so  altogether  foreign  to  the  conceptions  of  the  peo- 
ple of  that  age  and  nation,  that  it  is  not  easy  to  believe  it  was  per- 
fectly understood  even  on  its  first  publication.  But  when  a  foreign 
interpretation,  suggested  by  the  writings  of  the  Hebrews,  (the  full 
force  and  importance  of  which  it  is  impossible  the  poet  himself  could 
have  comprehended)  serves  to  unravel  the  difficulties,  and  to  enlight- 
en all  the  obscurities  of  this  extraordinary  poem  :  when  I  consider 
this,  I  own  I  am  at  a  loss  at  what  point  to  stop  the  licentiousness  of 
conjecture  upon  this  subject :  and  indeed  what  imagination  occa- 
sionally suggests,  I  dare  scarcely  express.  (E)  I  will  only  say,  the 
fact  has  something  in  it  so  extraordinary,  so  miraculous  to  my  con- 
ceptions, that  I  am  sometimes  half  inclined  to  fancy,  that  what 
Socrates,  in  the  lo  of  Plato,  says  (probably  in  his  usual  tone  of  irony) 
of  poets  in  general,  might  have  actually  come  to  pass  :  "  Hence," 
says  the  philosopher,  "  the  god,  having  by  possessing  their  minds 
deprived  them  of  their  natural  reason,  makes  use  of  them,  as  well 
as  of  the  prophets  and  diviners,  as  his  ministers,  to  the  end,  that  we 
who  hear  them  should  understand,  that  matters  of  so  great  impor- 
tance are  not  uttered  by  men  in  their  sober  senses,  but  that  it  is  the 
god  himself  who  utters  them,  and  addresses  us  by  their  mouths." 


OF  ELEGIAC  POETRY. 


TP. 
LECTURE  XXII. 

OP  THE  NATURE  AND  ORIGIN  OF    THE  HEBREW  ELEGY  J    AND  OF    THE 
LAMENTATIONS  OF  JEREMIAH. 

The  nature  and  origin  of  the  Hebrew  elegy  traced  into  the  solemn  expressions  of  grief  exhibit- 
ed in  their  funeral  ceremonies — The  office  and  function  of  professed  mourners  :  the  dirges, 
which  were  sung  by  them,  were  short,  metrical,  and  sententious;  many  of  the  lamentations, 
•which  are  extant  in  the  prophets,  were  composed  in  imitation  of  them — The  whole  of  the 
Lamentations  of  Jeremiah  constructed  upon  the  same  principle — The  general  conduct  and 
form  of  that  poem  ;  the  nature  of  the  verse  ;  the  subject  and  the  style. 

THAT  poetry  is  indebted  for  its  origin  to  the  more  vehement  af- 
fections of  the  human  mind,  has  been,  I  apprehend,  very  clearly 
evinced.  The  distribution  of  it  into  its  different  species  is  not, 
however,  exactly  regulated  by  the  nature  and  order  of  the  passions  ; 
though  I  think  this  is  a  circumstance  which  ought  not  entirely  to  be 
disregarded.  There  are,  indeed,  some  species  of  poetry  which  ad- 
mit of  every  passion,  such  as  the  lyric  ;  and  there  are  some  which 
scarcely  admit  of  any,  such  as  the  didactic  :  there  are  others,  how- 
ever, which  are  peculiarly  adapted  to  particular  passions,  tragedy 
for  instance  ;  and  we  have  already  had  occasion  to  explain  the  na- 
ture of  the  passions  which  are  congenial  to  the  prophetic  Muse. 
There  is  a  distinct  species  of  poetry,  which  is  appropriated  solely  to 
one  particular  passion ;  and,  what  is  worth  remarking,  we  have  nev- 
er known  a  people,  who  might  be  said  to  have  made  any  proficiency 
in  poetry,  who  had  not  a  peculiar  form  of  poem,  invented  purposely 
for  the  expression  of  sorrow,  and  appropriated  wholly  to  plaintive 
subjects.  This  species  of  poem  the  Greeks,  and  most  nations  after 
them,  distinguish  by  the  name  of  Elegy  :  the  Hebrews  call  it  fll^p 
or  ^iriD  both  which  are  significant  of  sorrow,  or  lamentation. 

The  genius  and  origin  of  this  poem  among  the  Hebrews  may  be 


LECT.  XXII.  ELEGY.  185 


clearly  traced  into  their  manner  of  celebrating  their  funeral  rites. 
It  may  indeed  more  properly  be  termed  the  dictate  of  nature  than 
of  custom,  to  follow  to  the  grave  the  remains  of  a  friend  with  grief 
and  lamentation.      The  ancient  Hebrews  were    not  ashamed  of 
obeying  the  voice  of  nature  on  this  occasion,  and  of  liberally  pour- 
ing forth   the  effusions  of    a  bleeding  heart.      The  language  of  / 
grief  is  simple  and  unaffected  ;  it  consists  of  a  plaintive,  intermitted, 
concise  form  of  expression,  if  indeed  a  simple  exclamation  of  sor-  , 
row  may  deserve  such  an  appellation. 

"  O  father  !  O  my  country  !  O  house  of  Priam  I"1 

exclaims  Andromache  in  the  tragedy  :  nor  less  pathetic  is  the  com- 
plaint of  the  tender  father  in  the  sacred  history,  on  the  loss  of  his  i 
beloved  though  disobedient  son :  "  O  my  son  Absalom  !  O  Absalom, 
my  son,  my  son  !"2  There  will  not,  therefore,  be  occasion  for  any 
laboured  disquisition  concerning  that  kind  of  solemn  dirge  which 
was  used  at  funerals  ;  but  since  the  sacred  writers  afford  many  ex- 
amples to  this  purpose,  I  shall  select  one  or  two.  The  prophet  of 
Bethlehem  brought  the  corpse  of  the  man  of  God,  who  was  slain  by 
the  lion,  back  to  the  city,  that  he  might  mourn  over  him  and  bury 
him.  He  placed  him  in  his  own  sepulchre,  and  they  wept  over  him, 
saying,  "  Alas,  my  brother  !"3  So  in  Jeremiah,  JEHOVAH  declares 
of  Joachim,  the  son  of  Josiah,  king  of  Judah  : 

'•  Non  lugebunt  eum,  Ah  mi  frater  !  vel  ah  soror  ! 

"  Non  lugebunt  eum,  Eheu,  domine  !  eheu  viri  maiestas  !"* 

These  and  similar  exclamations  were  sufficient  for  the  simple  expres- 
sion of  natural  and  unaffected  sorrow.  But  wayward  grief  is  fre- 
quently desirous  of  a  more  complete  and  ostentatious  display  of  its 
feelings  ;  it  studies  not  only  its  own  alleviation,  by  publishing  its  un- 
easiness, but  endeavours  to  incite  and  allure  others  into  a  society  in 
affliction.  Thus  when  Abner  fell  a  sacrifice  to  the  treachery  of  Jo- 
ab,  David  not  being  privy  to  the  action,  and  in  truth  extremely  af- 
flicted on  account  of  it ;  yet,  from  the  difficulty  of  his  situation,  and 
the  infant  state  of  his  authority,  not  daring  to  punish  the  murderer, 
he  fulfils  his  duty  both  to  himself  and  to  the  deceased  in  the  eyes  of 
the  people,  by  attending  the  funeral  in  the  character  of  chief  mour- 
ner ;  "  and  he  lifted  up  his  voice  and  wept  at  the  sepulchre,  and  all 
the  people  wept  with  him  ;"  and  then,  by  the  united  aid  of  poetry 

l  CICERO,  Tusc.  Qutest  lib.  iii.  a  SAM.  xix.  4. 

3  1  KINGS  xiii.  30.  4  JEB.  xxii.  1$. 

24 


186  -ELEGY.  LECT.  XXII. 

and  music,  he  further  stimulates  their  affliction  :  "  and  the  king  la- 
mented Abner,  and  said : 

"  An  peril  Abnerus  scelerati  more  nocentisque  ? 

"  An  reus  infami  crimina  morte  luit  ? 
"  At  tibi  non  fortes  violarunt  vincla  lacertos, 

"  Pressitve  indignos  dura  catena  pedes  : 
"  Heu  !  secure  doli,  et  dictis  confise  malorum  ! 

"  Fraude  et  mentito  captus  amore  peris  !" 

"  and  again  all  the  people  wept  over  him."5 

Thus,  a  certain  ostentatious  zeal,  which  frequently  accompanies 
real  sorrow,  is  apt  to  persuade  men,  that  it  is  impossible  to  pay  too 
much  respect  to  the  memory  of  departed  friends;  that  intemperance  of 
passion  too,  which  is  always  observable  in  these  cases,  self-indulgent 
to  excess,  and  is  more  inclined  to  irritate  than  to  soothe ;  in  a  word, 
opinion  or  fashion,  which  governs  and  misleads  the  bulk  of  mankind, 
easily  persuades  them  that  it  is  an  indispensable  duty  incumbent  upon 
the  living  to  afflict  themselves  for  the  sake  of  the  dead.  Each  of 
these  causes  has  contributed  to  establish  that  custom,  which  prevail- 
ed in  Palestine,  in  Phrygia,  and  afterwards  among  the  Greeks  and 
Romans,  of  engaging  mercenary  mourners  to  weep  at  their  fune- 
rals.6  This  office  generally  fell  to  the  lot  of  the  women,  either  be- 
cause  it  was  supposed  more  congenial  to  the  general  imbecility  of 
the  female  mind,  or  because,  from  the  flexibility  and  softness  of  their 
nature,  and  from  their  tender  and  plaintive  tone  of  voice,  they  were 
supposed  more  capable  of  working  upon  the  affections.  After  the 
custom  was  once  established,  we  find  no  scarcity  of  these  profession- 
al mourners,  well  accomplished  in  all  the  discipline  of  lamentation 
and  woe,  and  with  tears  always  at  command  for  a  reasonable  stipend. 
As  in  all  other  arts,  so  in  this,  perfection  consisted  in  the  exact  imi- 
tation  of  nature.  The  funeral  dirges  were  therefore  composed  in 
general  upon  the  model  of  those  complaints  which  flow  naturally  and 
spontaneously  from  the  afflicted  heart :  the  sentences  were  abrupt, 
mournful,  pathetic,  simple,  and  unembellished ;  on  one  account,  in- 
deed, more  elaborate  and  artificial,  because  they  consisted  of  verse, 
and  were  chanted  to  music.7 

52SAM.  iii.  33,34. 

6  See  Jos.  SCALIGER,  Conjectanea  in  Varronem  de  Ling.  Lat.  p.  76.  Edit. 
R.  Steph. 

7  See  MATT.  ix.  23,  and  LIGHTFOOT,  Exercitat.  Hebr.  and  Talmud,  in  loc. 


LECT.  XXII.  ELEGY.  187 


Many  vestiges  of  this  custom  are  found  in  the  writings  of  the  \ 
prophets  :  for  the  predictions  of  calamity  impending  over  states  and     } 
empires  are  often  replete  with  elegance,  and  generally  assume  the 
form  of  a  funeral  song.     But  this  remark  will  be  more  clearly  evi- 
denced by  a  few  examples ;  and  these  examples  will  serve  at  the 
same  time  to  illustrate  what  has  been  alledged  concerning  this  cus- 
tom.    Says  the  prophet  Amos,  addressing  the  Israelites,  and  de- 
nouncing vengeance  and  destruction  against  them,  and  their  gov- 
ernment, 

Audite  vatem  luctuum  praenuntium; 

Audite  lessum  funebrera : 
Occidit !  aeternum  virgo  occidit  Israelis  I 

Et  iacet  in  patrio  nuda,  relicta  solo ! 

And  a  little  after ; 

Eheu  !  per  urbem,  per  vias  Eheu  !  sonet ; 

Eheu  !  per  omnes  viculos  : 
Doctisque  iungat  praeficarum  luctubus 

Rudem  colonus  naeniam.8 

And  in  Jeremiah,  on  a  similar  occasion,  JEHOVAH  of  hosts  thus  ad- 
dresses his  people  : 

Luctus  peritas  hue  vocate  foeminas, 

Moestae  scientes  naeniae  : 
Orsae  eiulanti  flebiles  modos  choro 

Ferale  carmen  praecinant  ; 
Vt  mollis  omnes  humor  in  genas  fluat, 

Fluant  perennes  lachrymae. 
Nunc,  nunc  ad  aures  lugubris  fertur  sonus 

Sionis  altae  a  moenibus  : 
Funditus  occidimus  !  natalia  linquimus  arva  ! 
Linquirnus  heu  patri  dulcia  tecta  soli ! 
Adhuc  lehova  flebiles  cantus  iubet ; 

Parete  iussis,  praeficae  ! 
Docete  moestos  virgines  lessi  modos  ; 

Docete  vicinas  nurus  : 
Mors  urbem  invadit !  rapit  heu  iuvenesque  senesque  i 

Saevit  acerba  domi !  saevit  acerba  foris  ! 

Corpora  susa  iacent,  vacuis  proiectus  in  arvis 

Vt  fimus,  utque  iacet  falce  recisa  seges.9 

Many  instances  of  the  same  kind  occur  throughout  the  prophets, 
in  which,  as  in  these,  there  is  a  direct  allusion  to  the  institution 
from  which  they  originated.  There  are  also  may  other  passages  ev> 

8  AMOS  5. 1,  2, 16,  »  JER.  ix.  17—22, 


188  ELEGY.  LECT.  XXII. 

idently  of  the  same  kind,  although  the  funeral  ceremonies  be  not  im- 
mediately referred  to ;  and  the  peculiar  elegance  of  these  we  shall 
not  perceive,  unless  some  regard  be  paid  to  the  object  to  which  they 
allude.  The  examples  that  I  produce  are,  I  apprehend,  sufficient 
to  indicate  the  nature  and  origin  of  this  species  of  poetry,  and  to 
demonstrate,  that  these  artificial  complaints  were  originally  formed 
on  the  model,  and  expressed  in  the  language,  of  real  sorrow.  Hence 
also  it  will  be  apparent,  in  what  manner,  and  by  what  gradations,  the 
S-t3^{:  or  lamentations  of  the  Hebrews,  assumed  the  form  of  a  reg- 
ular poem  :  but  for  the  further  elucidation  of  this  subject,  it  may  not 
be  improper  to  examine  the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah,  the  most  re- 
markable poem  of  this  kind  extant,  according  to  the  principles  of 
these  funeral  compositions  ;  for  unless  we  examine  it  in  this  man- 
ner, and  by  this  criterion,  it  will  be  impossible  to  form  a  right  judge- 
ment concerning  it. 

I  shall  endeavour  to  treat  of  this  extraordinary  production  in  the 
following  order  :  First,  of  its  nature  and  form  in  general ;  secondly, 
of  the  metre  or  versification  ;  and  lastly,  of  the  subject,  the  senti- 
ments, and  imagery. 

The  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah  (for  the  title  is  properly  ancl  sig- 
nificantly plural)  consist  of  a  number  of  plaintive  effusions,  compo- 
sed upon  the  plan  of  the  funeral  dirges,  all  upon  the  same  subject, 
and  uttered  without  connexion  as  they  rose  in  the  mind,  in  a  long 
course  of  separate  stanzas.  These  have  afterwards  been  put  togeth- 
ier,  and  formed  into  a  collection  or  correspondent  whole.  If  any 
Deader,  however,  should  expect  to  find  in  them  an  artificial  and  me- 
thodical arrangement  of  the  general  subject,  a  regular  disposition  of 
the  parts,  a  perfect  connexion  and  orderly  succession  in  the  matter, 
and  with  all  this,  an  uninterrupted  series  of  elegance  and  correct- 
iess,  he  will  really  expect  what  was  foreign  to  the  prophet's  design. 
In  the  character  of  a  mourner,  he  celebrates  in  plaintive  strains  the 
obsequies  of  his  ruined  country  ;  whatever  presented  itself  to  his 
mind  in  the  midst  of  desolation  and  misery,  whatever  struck  him  as 
particularly  wretched  and  calamitous,  whatever  the  instant  sentiment 
of  sorrow  dictated,  he  pours  forth  in  a  kind  of  spontaneous  effusion. 
He  frequently  pauses,  and,  as  it  were,  ruminates  upon  the  same  ob- 
ject :  frequently  varies  and  illustrates  the  same  thought  with  differ- 
ent imagery,  and  a  different  choice  of  language  ;  so  that  the  whole 
bears  rather  the  appearance  of  an  accumulation  of  corresponding 
sentiments,  than  an  accurate  and  connected  series  of  different  ideas, 


LECT.  XXII.  ELEGY.  189 

arranged  in  the  form  of  a  regular  treatise.  I  would  not  be  understood 
to  insinuate,  that  the  author  has  paid  no  regard  whatever  to  order  or 
arrangement ;  or  that  transitions  truly  elegant  from  one  subject,  im- 
age, or  character,  to  another,  are  not  sometimes  to  be  found ;  this 
only  I  wish  to  remark,  that  the  nature  and  design  of  this  poem  (be- 
ing in  reality  a  collection  of  different  sentiments  or  subjects,  each 
of  which  assumes  the  form  of  a  funeral  dirge)  neither  require,  nor 
even  admit  of  a  methodical  arrangement.  The  whole  poem,  how- 
ever, may  be  divided  into  five  parts  ;  in  the  first,  second,  and  fourth, 
the  prophet  addresses  the  people  in  his  own  person,  or  else  person- 
ifies Jerusalem,  and  introduces  that  city  as  a  character ;  the  third 
part  is  supposed  to  be  uttered  by  the  chorus  of  Jews,  represented  by 
their  leader,  after  the  manner  of  the  Greek  tragedies :  and  in  the 
fifth,  the -whole  nation  of  the  Jews,  on  being  led  into  captivity,  pour 
fourth  their  united  complaints  to  Almighty  God.  This  last,  as  well 
as  the  others,  is  divided  into  twenty-two  periods,  according  to  the 
number  of  the  letters  of  the  alphabet ;  with  this  difference,  that  in 
<lhe  four  other  parts,  the  initial  letters  of  each  period  exactly  corres- 
pond with  the  alphabetical  order.  And  from  this  circumstance  we 
have  been  enabled  to  form  some  little  judgement  concerning  the 
Hebrew  metres. 

The  acrostic  or  alphabetical  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  was  certain- 
ly intended  to  assist  the  memory,  and  was  confined  altogether  to 
those  compositions,  which  consisted  of  detached  maxims  or  senti- 
ments without  any  express  order  or  connexion.  The  same  custom 
is  said  to  have  been  prevalent,  indeed  is  said  still  to  prevail  in  some 
degree,  among  the  Syrians,  the  Persians,  and  the  Arabs.  (A)IQ  With 
how  much  propriety  the  prophet  has  employed  this  form  of  composi- 
tion, on  the  present  occasion,  is  evident  from  what  has  been  said 
concerning  the  nature  of  this  poem.  The  manner  and  order  of  this 
kind  of  verse  is  as  follows  :  Each  of  the  five  parts,  or  grand  divi- 
sions, is  subdivided  into  twenty-two  periods,  or  stanzas  ;  these  peri- 
ods in  the  three  first  parts  are  all  of  them  triplets,  in  other  words, 
consist  each  of  three  lines,  only,  in  each  of  the  two  former  parts, 
there  is  one  period  consisting  of  four  lines.11  In  the  four  first  parts, 
the  initial  letter  of  each  period  follows  the  order  of  the  alphabet ; 
but  the  third  part  is  so  very  regular,  that  every  line  in  the  same  pe- 

10  See  ASSEMAN,  Biblioth.  Oriental.  Vol.  III.  p.  63, 180, 188,  328. 

11  In  Chap.  i.  t:  in  Chap,  ii.  j?. 


190  ELEGY.  LECT.  XXII. 

riod  begins  with  the  same  letter,  so  as  necessarily  to  ascertain  the 
length  of  every  verse  or  line  in  that  poem  :  indeed,  even  in  the  oth- 
ers, though  the  lines  are  not  distinctly  marked  in  this  manner,  it  is 
no  difficult  matter  to  ascertain  their  limits,  by  resolving  the  senten- 
ces into  their  constituent  members.  By  this  mode  of  computation 
it  appears,  that  in  the  fourth  part  all  the  periods  consist  of  distichs,12 
as  also  in  the  fifth,  which  is  not  acrostic  :  But  in  this  last  part  I 
must  remark  another  peculiarity,  namely,  that  the  lines  are  extreme- 
ly short,  whereas  in  all  the  rest  they  are  long. 

The  length  of  these  metres  is  worthy  of  notice :  we  find  in  this 
poem  lines  or  verses,  which  are  evidently  longer  by  almost  one  half, 
than  those  which  occur  usually,  and  on  other  occasions.  The 
length  of  them  seems  to  be,  on  an  average,  about  twelve  syllables  ; 
there  are  a  few  which  do  not  quite  amount  to  that  number,  and  there 
are  a  few  which  perhaps  exceed  it  by  two  or  three  syllables  :  for  al- 
though nothing  certain  can  be  determined  concerning  the  number 
of  syllables  (in  truth  I  pay  no  attention  to  the  fictions  of  the  Masor- 
ites)  there  is  room,  nevertheless,  for  very  probable  conjecture.  W^ 
are  not  to  suppose  this  peculiar  form  of  versification  utterly  without 
design  or  importance  :  on  the  contrary,  I  am  persuaded,  that  the 
prophet  adopted  this  kind  of  metre  as  being  more  diffuse,  more  copi- 
ous, more  tender,  in  all  respects  better  adapted  to  melancholy  sub- 
jects. I  must  add,  that  in  all  probability  the  funeral  dirges,  which 
were  sung  by  the  mourners,  were  commonly  composed  in  this  kind 
of  verse  ;  for  whenever,  in  the  prophets,  any  funeral  lamentations 
occur,  or  any  passages  formed  upon  that  plan,  the  versification  is,  if 
I  am  not  mistaken,  of  this  protracted  kind.  If  this  then  be  the 
case,  we  have  discovered  a  true,  legitimate  form  of  elegy  in  the  poet- 
ry of  the  Hebrews.  It  ought,  however,  to  be  remarked,  that  the 
same  kind  of  metre  is  sometimes,  though  rarely,  employed  upon  oth- 
er occasions  by  the  sacred  poets,  as  it  was  indeed  by  the  Greeks  and 
Romans.  There  are,  moreover,  some  poems  manifestly  of  the  ele- 
giac kind,  which  are  composed  in  the  usual  metre,  and  not  in  un- 
connected stanzas,  according  to  the  form  of  a  funeral  dirge. 

Thus  far  in  general  as  to  the  nature  and  method  of  the  poem, 
and  the  form  of  the  versification  ;  it  remains  to  offer  a  few  remarks 
concerning  the  subject  and  the  style. 

12  But  the  period  o,  as  it  is  now  read,  can  neither  be  conveniently  distribu- 
ted into  two,  nor  into  three  verses. 


LECT.  XXII.  ELEGY.  191 

That  the  subject  of  the  Lamentations  is  the  destruction  of  the 
holy  city  and  temple,  the  overthrow  of  the  state,  the  extermination 
of  the  people,  and  that  these  events  are  described  as  actually  accom- 
plished, and  not  in  the  style  of  prediction  merely,  must  be  evident 
to  every  reader ;  though  some  authors  of  considerable  reputation13 
have  imagined  this  poem  to  have  been  composed  on  the  death  of 
king  Josiah.  The  prophet,  indeed,  has  so  copiously,  so  tenderly, 
and  poetically  bewailed  the  misfortunes  of  his  country,  that  he  seems 
completely  to  have  fulfilled  the  office  and  duty  of  a  mourner.  In 
my  opinion,  there  is  not  extant  any  poem,  which  displays  such  a 
happy  and  splendid  selection  of  imagery  in  so  concentrated  a  state. 
What  can  be  more  elegant  and  poetical,  than  the  description  of  that 
once  flourishing  city,  lately  chief  among  the  nations,  sitting  in  the 
character  of  a  female,  solitary,  afflicted,  in  a  state  of  widowhood, 
deserted  by  her  friends,  betrayed  by  her  dearest  connexions,  implor- 
ing relief,  and  seeking  consolation  in  vain  ?  What  a  beautiful  per- 
sonification is  that  of  "  the  ways  of  Sion  mourning  because  none 
are  come  to  her  solemn  feasts  ?"  How  tender  and  pathetic  are  the 
following  complaints? 

1  Nihilne  haec  ad  vos,  qui  per  viam  transitis  ?  attendite,  et  videte, 

'  Num  sit  usquam  dolor  instar  mei  doloris,  qui  mihi  inflictus  est, 

'  Quum  moerore  me  affecit  lehova  in  die  irae  eius  exardescentis. 

1  Propter  haec  ego  fleo,  oculis  meis  aqua  manantibus  ; 

'  Quia  longe  a  me  abest  consolator,  qui  mihi  recreet  animam  : 

"  Desolati  sunt  filii  mei,  quoniam  invaluit  hostis."14 

But  to  detail  its  beauties  would  be  to  transcribe  the  entire  poem.  I 
shall  make  but  one  remark  relative  to  certain  passages,  and  to  the 
former  part  of  the  second  alphabet  in  particular.  If,  in  this  pas- 
sage, the  prophet  should  be  thought  by  some  to  affect  a  style  too 
bold  and  energetic  for  the  expression  of  sorrow,  let  them  only  advert 
to  the  greatness  of  the  subject,  its  importance,  sanctity,  and  solemni- 
ty ;  and  let  them  consider  that  the  nature  of  the  performance  abso- 
lutely required  these  to  be  set  forth  in  a  style  suitable,  in  some  de- 
gree at  least,  to  their  inherent  dignity  ;  let  them  attentively  consider 
these  things,  and  I  have  not  a  doubt,  but  they  will  readily  excuse 
the  sublimity  of  the  prophet. (B) 

*3  JOSBPHUS,  JEROME,  USHER.  *4  LAM.  i.  12,  and  IQ. 


LECTURE  XXIII. 

OF  THE  REMAINING  ELEGIES  OF  THE  HEBREWS. 

Many  poems  of  this  kind  still  extant  in  the  writings  of  the  Hebrews.— One  collection  of  Elegies 
or  Lamentations  appears  to  be  lost. — Elegies  in  Ezekiel. — Many  passages  in  Job  may  be  ac- 
counted Elegiac.— About  a  seventh  part  of  the  book  of  Psalms  consists  of  Elegies.— A  per- 
fect specimen  of  elegiac  poetry  from  the  Psalms.— -The  Lamentation  of  David  over  Saul  and 
Jonathan  explained:  attempted  in  Latin  verse. 

IN  the  last  Lecture  the  nature  and  origin  of  the  Hebrew  elegy 
was  explained  ;  the  form  and  commencement  of  that  species  of  poet- 
ry was  traced  into  the  solemn  dirges  which  were  chanted  at  funer- 
als by  the  professed  mourners  ;  and  this  was  confirmed  by  instances 
taken  from  those  short  elegies  or  lamentations  which  occur  in  the 
prophets,  and  by  an  accurate  examination  of  that  remarkable  poem, 
the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah.  I  shall  now  treat  of  some  other 
poems,  which,  although  they  do  not  exactly  assume  the  form  of  a 
funeral  dirge,  are  nevertheless  to  be  comprehended  in  this  class. 

That  the  Hebrews  were  formerly  possessed  of  some  collection  of 
elegies  or  lamentations,  which  has  not  been  transmitted  to  us,  we 
may  understand  from  that  passage  of  sacred  history,1  in  which  men- 
tion is  made  of  the  solemn  mourning  publicly  celebrated  at  the  fun- 
eral of  Josiah  ;  where  it  appears  that  a  poem,  composed  for  the  oc- 
casion by  Jeremiah  the  prophet,  amongst  others  had  a  place. 
Though  the  book,  which  is  on  this  occasion  referred  to,  and  which 
probably  contained  the  most  excellent  of  the  Hebrew  elegies,  appears 
to  be  lost,  there  are  still  extant  many  specimens  of  this  kind  of  po- 
etry ;  whence  we  may  reasonably  infer,  that  no  species  of  composi- 
tion was  more  in  use  among  the  Hebrews  than  the  elegiac,  the  ode 
perhaps  only  excepted. 

In  the  first  place,  beside  those  short  dirges,  which  occur  in  the 
writings  of  almost  all  the  prophets,  as  was  before  remarked,  there 
are  some  in  Ezekiel,  which  are  actually  distinguished  by  the  title  of 
Lamentations,  and  which  may  with  the  utmost  propriety  be  referred 

iSChron.  xxxv.  25. 


XXIII.  THE  ELEGIAC  POETRY,  ETC.  193 

to  the  class  of  elegies.  Among  these  are  the  two  lamentations  con- 
cerning Tyre,  and  the  king  of  Tyre.2  In  these,  though  the  intent  of 
the  prophet  be  to  denounce  vengeance  and  punishment  against  these 
objects  of  the  divine  wrath,  rather  than  to  lament  their  misfortunes, 
and  though  he  succeed  in  his  aim  of  exciting  terror  instead  of  pity, 
yet  the  mournful  nature  of  the  subject  fully  corresponds  with  the  ti- 
tle, and  both  the  matter  and  the  sentiments  bear  some  degree  of  re- 
semblance to  the  funeral  songs.  According  tpJ  the  custom  which 
prevailed  on  those  solemn  occasions,  the  glory,  riches,  and  power  of 
the  deceased  are  pompously  enumerated ;  and  thus  by  contrasting/ 
his  former  prosperity  with  the  present  calamity,  the  effect  is  consid-j 
erably  augmented.  As  for  the  two  prophecies,3  in  which  the  de- 
struction of  Egypt  is  predicted,  they  seem  to  have  been  entitled  La- 
mentations merely  from  the  mournful  nature  of  the  subject;  for 
they  contain  nothing  of  the  elegiac  form  or  style,  scarcely  any  senti- 
ment expressive  of  sorrow,  and  seem  altogether  composed  for  the 
denunciation  of  vengeance,  and  the  exciting  of  terror.  Two  other 
lamentations,4  the  one  over  the  princes  of  Judah,  and  the  other 
over  Jerusalem,  may  be  explained  upon  similar  principles :  they  are 
indeed  poetical  parables,  and  have  been  already  noticed  in  their 
proper  place. 

There  are  also  many  passages  in  that  most  admirable  poem, 
which  bears  the  name  of  Job,5  deserving  to  be  accounted  legitimate 
elegies  :  and  indeed  I  do  not  know  any  more  perfect  specimens  of 
this  species  of  composition  ;  so  completely  are  the  inmost  recesses  of 
sorrow  displayed,  and  the  remotest  fountains  of  pity  explored  and  laid 
open.  But  since  these  are  parts  of  an  entire  poem,  they  are  not 
rashly  to  be  detached  from  the  body  of  the  work  ;  and  since  the  ele- 
gant disposition,  and  the  extraordinary  beauties  of  this  inimitable 
composition,  will  deserve  a  fuller  examination,  it  is  sufficient  in  this 
place  to  have  mentioned  these  passages  as  exquisite  treasures,  which 
the  Muse  of  sorrow  might  legally  claim  as  her  own,  were  she  dis- 
posed to  assert  her  rigid  rights. 

I  proceed,  therefore,  to  the  book  of  Psalms,  which  is  a  collection, 
under  the  general  title  of  hymns  to  the  praise  of  God,  containing 
poems  of  different  kinds,  and  elegies  among  the  rest.  If  indeed  the 

2  EZEK.  xxvii.  and  xxviii.12 — 19.  3  EZEK.  xxxii. 

4  EZEK.  xix.  5  See  Job,  chap.  iii.  vi.  vii.  x.  xiv.  xvii.  xix.  xxix.  xxx. 

25 


194  THE    ELEGIAC   POETRY  LECT.  XXIII. 

contents  of  the  book  were  methodically  arranged  in  their  proper  clas- 
ses, not  less  than  a  sixth  or  seventh  part  would  appear  to  be  elegiac. 
Since,  however,  this  is  a  matter  dependant  in  a  great  measure  upon 
opinion,  and  not  to  be  clearly  demonstrated  upon  determinate  prin- 
ciples ;  since  the  nature  of  the  subject,  the  complexion  of  the  style,  or 
the  general  form  and  disposition  of  each  poem,  must  decide  the  ques- 
tion ;  and  since  different  persons  will  judge  differently  upon  these 
points ;  it  will  hardly  be  expected  that  I  should  on  this  occasion  pro- 
ceed to  the  regular  classification  of  them.  It  will  indeed  be  more  to 
your  advantage,  and  more  to  our  present  purpose,  to  select  an  ex- 
ample which  may  be  clearly  demonstrated  to  belong  to  the  elegiac 
class. 

Under  this  appellation  then  I  shall  not  hesitate  to  recommend 
to  your  notice  the  forty-second  Psalm,  since  I  cannot  help  esteem- 
ing it  one  of  the  most  beautiful  specimens  of  the  Hebrew  elegy. 
The  author  of  this  elegant  complaint,  exiled  from  the  temple,  and 
from  the  public  exercise  of  his  religion,  to  the  extreme  parts  of  Ju- 
dea,  persecuted  by  his  numerous  enemies,  and  agitated  by  their  re- 
proaches, pours  forth  his  soul  to  God  in  this  tender  and  pathetic 
composition.  The  ardent  feelings  of  a  devout  heart  are  admirably 
expressed,  while  the  memory  of  former  felicity  seems  to  aggravate 
his  present  anguish.  The  extreme  anxiety  of  a  mind,  depressed  by 
the  burthen  of  sorrow,  and  yet  at  the  same  time  impatient  under  it ; 
overcome  by  an  accumulation  of  evils,  yet  in  some  degree  endeav* 
curing  to  resist  them,  and  admitting,  through  the  dark  cloud  of  af- 
fliction, a  glimmering  ray  of  hope  and  consolation,  is  finely  depict- 
ed. In  frequent  and  almost  instantaneous  transitions  he  glows  with 
love,  and  droops  with  lamentations ;  he  complains,  he  expostulates ; 
he  despairs,  and  yet  hopes ;  he  is  afflicted,  and  again  consoled.  It 
is  not  to  be  expected  that  any  poetical  version  should  express  these 
sentiments  with  the  force,  the  energy,  and  more  particularly  with 
the  conciseness  of  the  Hebrew,  which  is  indeed  not  to  be  imitated 
in  any  other  language :  though  it  must  be  confessed,  that  this  poem 
is  more  diffuse  than  the  Hebrew  poetry  in  general.  The  following 
paraphrase,  however,  though  infinitely  short  of  the  original  in  sub- 
limity, will  perhaps  serve  to  evince  the  correspondence  of  the  subject 
and  sentiments  of  this  poem,  with  the  elegiac  productions  of  mod- 
ern times : 

"  Cervus,  ut  in  medio  celsis  de  montibus  aestu 
"  Actus,  in  algentes  fertur  anhelus  aquas, 


LECT.  XXIII.  OP  THE  HEBREWS.  195 

"  Sic  mea  vitali  satiari  numinis  unda 

"  Mens  avet,  et  Domini  languet  amore  sui : 
"  Gaudet  et  optat  amans,  vitae  se  adjungere  fonti  : 

"  His  mihi  deliciis  quae  dabit  hora  frui  ? 
11  Scandere  me  quoties  memini  penetralia  sacra, 

"  Et  longe  populos  ordine  pone  sequi ; 
"  Aurea  dum  recolo  missas  ad  sidera  voces, 

"  Et  plausum  festis  quern  decet  esse  choris  : 
"  In  lachrymas  totus  miser  et  suspiria  solvor ; 

"  Inter  et  aerumnas  est  mihi  dulce  queri. 
"  Cur  ita  turbaris  ?  cur  te,  mens,  deiicis  exspes  ? 

"  Cur  ita  me  torques  anxia  ?  fide  Deo  : 
/"  Scilicet  hie  placido  recreat  mihi  lumine  pectus ; 
^      "  Et  mihi  materies  unica  laudis  erit. 
"  Dum  queror,  in  mentem,  liquidis  lordanis  ab  undis, 

"  Sepositisque  iugis,  tu  mihi  saepe  redis. 
"  Gurgitis  est  gurges,  rauci  comes  aequoris  aequor : 

"  Fluctibus  infelix  obruor  usque  novis. 
"  Luce,  sod  in  media  bonitas  tua  fulcit  abysso  : 

"  Nocte,  parens  vitae,  tu  mihi  carmen  eris. 
"  Tune  ego,  cur,  dicam,  capiunt  te  oblivia  nostri  ? 

"  Rerum  opifex,  animae  portus  et  aura  meae  ! 
"  Cur  prope  confectum  curis,  lachrymisque  sepultum. 

"  Me  sinis  immani  durus  ab  hoste  premi  ? 
"  Hie  petit  insultans,  ubi  sis  :  ego  vulneror  inde, 

"  Ensis  et  in  morem  permeat  ossa  dolor. 
"  Cur  ita  turbaris  ?  cur  te,  mens,  deiicis  exspes  ? 

"  Cur  ita  me  torques  anxia  ?  fide  Deo  : 
/  "  Scilicet  hie  placido  recreat  mihi  lumine  pectus, 
{     "  Et  mihi  materies  unica  laudis  erit." 

Another  point,  to  which  I  would  wish  every  person,  who  reads 
this  Psalm  in  the  original  to  advert,  is  the  division  of  the  periods, 
and  the  resolution  of  them  into  their  constituent  parts  or  members  ; 
he  will  find,  I  believe,  that  the  periods  spontaneously  divide  into 
verses  of  nearly  equal  length  and  measure,  exactly  similar  to  those 
of  the  four  first  chapters  of  the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah ;  such  as 
I  before  remarked  appeared  to  constitute  the  established  metre  of 
the  Hebrew  elegy.  The  whole  of  the  nineteenth  Psalm  consists  al- 
so of  the  same  kind  of  verse,  except  the  epode,  which  contains  two 
long  verses  of  the  same  kind,  and  one  shorter,  which  last  is  once  re- 
peated. The  forty-third  Psalm  too  seems  to  be  constructed  upon 
similar  principles,  containing  eight  of  the  same  kind  of  verses,  with 
the  same  epode.  And  since  it  is  written  in  the  same  train  of  senti- 
ment, the  same  style,  and  even  apparently  in  the  same  metre,  it 


196  THE    ELEGIAC  POETRY  L.ECT.  XXIII. 

ought  not  perhaps  to  be  separated  from  the  preceding  Psalm,  but 
rather  to  be  considered  as  a  part  or  continuation  of  the  same  compo- 
sition :  if  this  be  true,  the  whole  poem  consists  of  three  parts  almost 
equal  and  alike,  each  of  which  is  concluded  by  the  same  intercalary 
period  or  stanza. (A) 

There  is  another  most  beautiful  poem  of  the  elegiac  kind,  which 
on  this  occasion  solicits  our  attention,  I  mean  the  lamentation  of 
David  for  Saul  and  Jonathan  ;6  which  appears  to  have  been  extract- 
ed by  the  historian  from  some  poetical  book,  no  longer  extant,  en- 
titled T$".(B)  It  will  not,  I  flatter  myself,  be  thought  unreasonable 
to  request  your  attention,  while  I  endeavour  to  investigate,  with 
seme  degree  of  accuracy,  the  nature  and  composition  of  this  poem. 

The  poet  treats,  though  in  no  common  manner,  two  common 
topics,  and  those  the  best  adapted  to  the  genuine  elegy ;  that  I 
mean  which  was  employed  in  the  celebration  of  the  funeral  rites  ; 
he  expresses  his  own  sorrow ;  and  he  celebrates  the  praises  of  the 
deceased.  Both  sentiments  are  displayed  in  the  exordium  ;  but, 
as  might  naturally  be  expected,  sorrow  is  predominant,  and  bursts 
forth  with  the  impetuosity  of  exclamation  : 

"  O  decor  Israelis,  in  montibus  tuis  perempte  ! 
"  Quomodo  ceciderunt  fortes  !" 

Grief  is  of  a  timid  and  suspicious  temper  ;  and  always  ready  at  in- 
venting causes  for  self-torment ;  easily  offended  by  neglect,  and  ut- 
terly impatient  of  ridicule  or  contempt : 

"  Audiverunt  gemitus  meos ;  non  est  qui  me  consoletur  : 

"  Audiverunt  omnes  inimici  mala  mea;  quod  ita  me  affeceris,  laetantur."7 

So  Jerusalem  complains  in  Jeremiah,  exaggerating  in  the  strongest 
terms  her  own  misfortunes.  Our  poet  feels  and  expresses  himself 
in  almost  the  same  manner  : 

"  Ne  annuntietis  Gathae, 

"  Neve  praedicetis  in  vicis  Ascalonis ; 

"  Ne  laetentur  filiae  Philistaeorum, 

"  Ne  triumphent  filiae  praeputiatorum." 

The  same  passion  is  also  sullen  and  querulous,  wayward  and  pee- 
vish, unable  to  restrain  its  impatience,  and  firing  at  every  thing  that 
opposes  it.  "  Would  !  ne'er  that  in  the  Pelian  grove" — says  one  of 

6  2  SAM.  i.  17—27.  7  LAM.  i.  21. 


LECT.  XXIII.  OP  THE  HEBREWS.  197' 

the  characters  in  the  Medea  of  Ennius.8     On  another  occasion  we 
find  a  person  inveighing  against  the  innocent  mountain  : 


O'tovg  «v^ 

M-u/ta&ai  T?  aya&ovs  rs  y.ai  ev7tctT()ida$, 
Oi  TOT'  tdei&v  OLWV  nartQtav  xv(>yaav  :9 

Our  poet  is  not  more  temperate  : 

"  O  montes  Gilboae  !  ne  in  vos  ros  neque  pluvia."  — 

If  these  passages  were  brought  before  the  severe  tribunal  of  reason, 
nothing  could  appear  more  absurd  ;  but  if  examined  by  the  criterion 
of  the  passions,  nothing  can  be  more  consonant  to  nature,  more 
beautiful  or  emphatic.  Not  to  refer  effects  to  their  real  causes  is  in 
logic  an  imperfection,  but  in  poetry  often  a  beauty  ;  the  appeal  in 
the  one  case  is  to  reason,  in  the  other  to  the  passions.  When  sor- 
row has  had  sufficient  vent,  there  is  leisure  to  expatiate  on  the  ac- 
complishments of  the  dead.  In  the  first  place  they  are  celebrated 
for  their  virtue  and  heroic  actions  ;  next  for  their  piety  and  mutual 
affection  ;  and  lastly  for  their  agility  and  strength.  Saul  is  honour- 
ed with  a  particular  panegyric,  because  he  had  enriched  his  people, 
and  contributed  to  the  general  felicity  and  splendour  of  the  state. 
This  passage,  by  the  way,  is  most  exquisite  composition  :  the  wo- 
men of  Israel  are  most  happily  introduced,  and  the  subject  of  the 
encomium  is  admirably  adapted  to  the  female  characters.  Jonathan 
is  at  last  celebrated  in  a  distinct  eulogium,  which  is  beautifully  pa- 
thetic, is  animated  with  all  the  fervour,  and  sweetened  with  all  the 
tenderness,  of  friendship. 

I  should  have  made  some  particular  observations  on  the  interca- 
lary period  or  epode  inserted  in  the  Psalm  which  was  lately  under 
our  consideration,  but  that  1  was  aware  an  opportunity  would  again 
present  itself  during  the  examination  of  this  poem.  This  recurrence 
of  the  same  idea  is  perfectly  congenial  to  the  nature  of  elegy  ;  since 
grief  is  fond  of  dwelling  upon  the  particular  objects  of  the  passion, 
and  frequently  repeating  them.  There  is  something  singular,  how- 
ever, in  the  intercalary  period  which  occurs  in  this  poem,  for  it  does 
not  regularly  assume  the  same  form  of  words,  as  is  the  case  in  gen- 
eral, but  appears  with  a  little  variation.  It  is  three  times  introduced, 

8  CICERO,  De  Fato.     See  EURIPIDES,  Medea,  v.  1. 

Scolion  apud  ATHENJEUM,  lib.  xv.     See  EUSTATHIUS  ad  Iliad  J.  171. 
Edit.  ALEX.  POLITI,  Florentine.  and  HERODOT.  Terpsichore,  63,  64. 


198  THE  ELEGIAC  POETRY  LiECT.  XXIII. 

beautifully  diversified  in  the  order  and  diction  :  it  forms  part  of  the 
exordium,  as  well  as  of  the  conclusion,  and  is  once  inserted  in  the 
body  of  the  poem. 

Another  observation,  though  it  merit  no  higher  title  than  a  con- 
jecture, I  do  not  hesitate  to  submit  to  your  consideration.  There 
appears  to  be  something  singular  in  the  versification  of  this  elegy, 
and  a  very  free  use  of  different  metres.  It  neither  consists  altogeth- 
er of  the  long  verses,  nor  yet  of  the  short  ones  (which  are  the  most 
usual  in  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews ;)  but  rather  of  a  very  artful  and 
happy  mixture  of  both,  so  that  the  concise  and  pointed  parallelism 
serves  to  correct  the  languor  and  diffuseness  of  the  elegiac  verse  : 
and  this  form  of  versification  takes  place  also  in  some  of  the  Psalms. 
Certainly  there  is  a  great  appearance  of  art  and  design  in  this  nice 
and  poetical  conformation  of  the  periods  :  and  that  no  grace  or  ele- 
gance should  be  wanting  to  this  poem,  it  is  no  less  remarkable  for 
the  general  beauty,  splendour,  and  perspicuity  of  the  style. 

To  do  complete  justice  to  the  economy  of  this  excellent  produc- 
tion, it  is  absolutely  necessary  to  exhibit  it  in  an  entire  state.  Not 
to  tire  you  therefore  with  a  repetition  of  the  verbal  translation,  I  have 
endeavoured  to  express  the  general  sentiments  and  imagery  in  ele- 
giac numbers. 

Ergone  magnanimi  heroes,  decus  Israelis, 

Proh  dolor  !  in  patriis  occubuere  iugis  ? 
Fama  Philistaeas  ah  !  ne  pertingat  ad  urbes, 

Neu  Gatham  tantae  nuntia  cladis  eat ; 
Hostis  ut  invisos  agitet  sine  more  triumphos, 

ludaicisque  nurus  barbara  laeta  malis. 
Triste  solum,  Gilboa  !  tuis  ne  in  montibus  unquam 

Vel  ros,  vel  pulviae  decidat  imber  aquae ! 
Nulla  ferat  primes  aris  tua  messis  honores  ; 

De  grege  lecta  tuo  victima  nulla  cadat ! 
Qua  scuta  heroum,  qua  Sauli  parma  relicta  est, 

Necquicquam  heu  !  sacrum  cui  caput  unxit  onyx. 
Non  sine  caede  virum  Sauli  prius  hasta  redibat ; 

Non  lonathani  expers  sanguinis  arcus  erat : 
Nobile  par,  quos  iunxit,  amor,  quos  gloria  iunxit, 

Unaque  nunc  fato  iungit  acerba  dies. 
Ut  celeres  vicere  aquilas,  validosque  leones, 

Viribus  et  cursu  bella  ciere  pares ! 
Atvos,  Isacides,  Saulum  lugete,  puellae, 

Qui  dites  vobis  rettulit  exuvias  ; 
Qui  collo  germnas,  qui  textile  vestibus  aurum; 

Coccina  qui  Tyria  tincta  bis  arte  dedit. 


LECT.  XXIII.  OP  THE  HEBREWS.  199 

Heu  quianam  heroum  bello  perit  irrita  virtus  ! 

Montibus  in  patriis,  ah  lonathane,  iaces ! 
Tu  mihi,  tu  aeterno  flendus,  lonathane,  dolore 

Occidis,  heu  misero  frater  adempte  mihi ! 
Heu  pietas,  heu  rata  fides,  et  dulcia  fesso 

Alloquia,  heu  sanctae  foedus  amicitiae  ! 
Quae  mihi  in  adversis  tulerat  nova  gaudia  rebus  j 

Gaudia,  foemineus  quae  dare  nescit  amor. 
Proh  dolor  !  heu  quianam  duro  in  certamine  belli 

Fracta  virum  virtus,  irritaque  arma  iacent !  (c) 


LECTURE  XXIV. 

OP  THE  PROVERBS,  OR  DIDACTIC  POETRY  OF  THE  HEBREWS. 


The  ancient  mode  of  instructing  by  parables  or  proverbs  —  The  Proverbs  of  Solomon:  that  work 
consists  of  two  parts;  the  first,  which  extends  to  the  ninth  chapter  inclusive,  truly  poetical, 
and  most  elegant  in  its  kind  :  the  remainder  of  the  book  consists  of  detached  maxims.  —  The 
principal  characteristics  of  a  parable  or  proverb;  brevity  (which  naturally  involves  in  it 
some  degree  of  obscurity)  and  elegance  —  Ecclesiastes  :  the  argument,  disposition.,  and  style 
of  that  work  —  all  the  alphabetical  Psalms  of  this  kind,  as  well  as  some  others  —  The  Wisdom 
of  the  son  of  Sirach  written  originally  in  Hebrew,  in  imitation  of  the  Proverbs  of  Solomon  — 
The  fidelity  of  the  Greek  translator;  and  the  great  elegance  of  the  work  in  general  —  The 
Wisdom  of  Solomon,  written  originally  in  Greek,  and  in  imitation  of  the  Proverbs;  the  style 
and  economy  of  that  book  —  A  Hebrew  translation  of  the  xxivth  chapter  of  Ecclesiasticus. 

IN  those  periods  of  remote  antiquity,  which  may  with  the  utmost 
propriety  be  styled  the  infancy  of  societies  and  nations,  the  usual,  if 
not  the  only,  mode  of  instruction  was  by  detached  aphorisms  or  prov- 
erbs. Human  wisdom  was  then  indeed  in  a  rude  and  unfinished 
state  ;  it  was  not  digested,  methodized,  or  reduced  to  order  and 
connexion.  Those,  who,  by  genius  and  reflection,  exercised  in  the 
school  of  experience,  had  accumulated  a  stock  of  knowledge,  were 
desirous  of  reducing  it  into  the  most  compendious  form,  and  com- 
prised in  a  few  maxims  those  observations  which  they  apprehended 
most  essential  to  human  happiness.  This  mode  of  instruction  was, 
in  truth,  more  likely  than  any  other  to  prove  efficacious  with  men  in 
a  rude  stage  of  society  ;  for  it  professed  not  to  dispute,  but  to  com- 
mand ;  not  to  persuade,  but  to  compel  :  it  conducted  them  not  by  a 
circuit  of  argument,  but  led  immediately  to  the  approbation  and 
practice  of  integrity  and  virtue.  That  it  might  not,  however,  be  al- 
together destitute  of  allurement,  and  lest  it  should  disgust  by  an  ap- 
pearance of  roughness  and  severity,  some  degree  of  ornament  be- 
came necessary  ;  and  the  instructers  of  mankind  added  to  their  pre- 
cepts the  graces  of  harmony,  and  illuminated  them  with  metaphors, 
comparisons,  allusions,  and  the  other  embellishments  of  style.  This 
manner,  which  with  other  nations  prevailed  only  during  the  first  pe- 


LECT.  XXIV.  DIDACTIC  POETRY.  201 

riods  of  civilization,  with  the  Hebrews  continued  to  be  a  favourite 
style  to  the  latest  ages  of  their  literature.  It  obtained  among  them 
the  appellation  of  tpy^a  (parables)  as  well  because  it  consisted 
in  a  great  measure  of  parables  strictly  so  called  ;  as  because  it  pos- 
sessed uncommon  force  and  authority  over  the  minds  of  the  auditors. 

Of  this  didactic  poetry  there  are  still  extant  many  specimens  in 
the  writings  of  the  Hebrews  ;  and  among  these  the  first  rank  must 
be  assigned  to  the  Proverbs  of  Solomon.  This  work  consists  of  two 
parts.  The  first,  serving  as  a  proem  or  exordium,  includes  the  nine 
first  chapters ;  and  is  varied,  elegant,  sublime,  and  truly  poetical ; 
the  order  of  the  subjects  is  in  general  excellently  preserved,  and  the 
parts  are  very  aptly  connected  among  themselves.  It  is  embellish- 
ed with  many  beautiful  descriptions  and  personifications  ;  the  dic- 
tion is  polished,  and  abounds  with  all  the  ornaments  of  poetry  ;  in- 
somuch, that  it  scarcely  yields  in  elegance  and  splendour  to  any  of 
the  sacred  writings.  The  other  part,  which  extends  from  the  be- 
ginning of  the  tenth  chapter  to  the  end  of  the  book,  consists  almost 
entirely  of  detached  parables  or  maxims,  which  have  but  little  in 
them  of  the  sublime  or  poetical,  except  a  certain  energetic  and  con- 
cise turn  of  expression.  Since  the  didactic  poetry  of  the  Hebrews 
assumes  in  general  this  unconnected  and  sententious  form,  and  since 
this  style  intrudes  itself  into  almost  all  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews, 
and  occurs  frequently  in  poems  of  a  character  very  different  from  the 
didactic ;  I  shall  treat  principally  of  this  latter  part  of  the  book  of 
Proverbs,  and  endeavour  more  minutely  to  investigate  the  precise 
nature  of  a  parable  or  proverb. 

Solomon  himself,  in  one  of  his  proverbs,  has  explained  the  prin- 
cipal excellencies  of  this  form  of  composition  ;  exhibiting  at  once  a 
complete  definition  of  a  parable  or  proverb,  and  a  very  happy  speci- 
men of  what  he  describes : 

"  Poma  aurea  in  opere  reticulato  argenti, 
"  Dictum  prolatum  in  rotis  suis."l 

Thus  he  insinuates,  that  grave  and  profound  sentiments  are  to  be  set 
off  by  a  smooth  and  well  turned  phraseology,  as  the  appearance  of 
the  most  beautiful  and  exquisitely  coloured  fruit,  or  the  imitation  of 
it  perhaps  in  the  most  precious  materials,  is  improved  by  the  cir- 
cumstance of  shining,  as  through  a  veil,  through  the  reticulations  of 
a  silver  vessel  exquisitely  carved.  Nay,  he  further  intimates,  that  it 

1  PROT.  xxv.  1). 

26 


202  DIDACTIC    POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXIV. 


is  not  only  a  neat  turn  and  polished  diction  which  must  recommend 
them,  but  that  truth  itself  acquires  additional  beauty,  when  partially 
discovered  through  the  veil  of  elegant  fiction  and  imagery. 

To  consider  the  subject  in  a  still  more  particular  point  of  view, 
let  brevity  be  admitted  as  the  prime  excellence  of  a  proverb.2  This 
is,  indeed,  a  necessary  condition,  without  which  it  can  neither  retain 
the  name  nor  the  nature.  For  if  the  sentiment  be  diffusely  express- 
ed, if  even  when  it  contains  a  double  image,  it  exceed  ten  or  at  most 
twelve  words,  it  is  no  longer  a  proverb,  but  a  harangue.  For  the 
discriminating  sentiment  must  force  itself  on  the  mind  by  a  single 
effort,  and  not  by  a  tedious  process ;  the  language  must  be  strong 
and  condensed,  rather  omitting  some  circumstances  that  appear  ne- 
cessary, than  admitting  any  thing  superfluous.  Horace  himself  in- 
sists upon  this  as  one  of  the  express  rules  of  didactic  poetry,  and  he 
has  assigned  the  reason  on  which  it  is  founded : 

"  Quicquid  praecipies,  esto  brevis ;  ut  cito  dicta 
"  Percipiant  animi  dociles,  teneantque  fideles."3 

Solomon  expresses  the  same  sentiment  in  his  own  (that  is  the  para- 
bolic) manner : 

"  Dicta  sapientum  sicut  stimuli, 

"  Et  instar  clavorum  in  altum  defixa  :"4 

That  is,  they  instantaneously  stimulate  or  affect  the  mind ;  they 
penetrate  deeply,  and  are  firmly  retained.  (A) 

Some  degree  of  obscurity  is  generally  an  attendant  upon  exces- 
sive brevity ;  and  the  parabolic  style  is  so  far  from  being  abhorrent  of 
this  quality,  that  it  seems  frequently  to  affect  it,  and  to  regard  it  as 
a  perfection.  This  obscurity  is  not  indeed  altogether  without  its 
uses :  it  whets  the  understanding,  excites  an  appetite  for  knowledge, 
keeps  alive  the  attention,  and  exercises  the  genius  by  the  labour  of 
the  investigation.  The  human  mind,  moreover,  is  ambitious  of  hav- 
ing a  share  in  the  discovery  of  truth ;  excessive  indolence  or  dulness 
only  requires  a  very  open  and  minute  display,  or  prefers  a  passive 
inertness  to  the  exercise  and  the  praise  of  perspicacity  and  discern- 

2  "  The  brevity  of  this  kind  of  composition,  and  the  condensing  of  much 
thought  into  a  small  compass,  renders  it  more  sententious,  more  sage  and 
expressive.  As  in  a  small  seed  the  whole  power  of  vegetation,  which  is  to 
produce  a  tree,  is  contained.  And  if  any  writer  should  amplify  the  sentence, 
it  would  be  no  longer  a  proverb,  but  a  declamation."  DEMET.  PHAL.  ZZtoi  E<>- 
fojrctag.  Sect.  ix. 

3  ART.  POET.  v.  336.  4  ECCLES.  xii.  11. 


LECT.  XXIV.  DIDACTIC  POETRY.  203 


ment ;  and  that  knowledge  is  ever  most  delightful,  which  we  have 
compassed  by  our  own  efforts.5  Other  causes,  however,  indepen- 
dent of  the  brevity  and  conciseness  of  the  language,  have,  in  many 
cases,  contributed  to  the  obscurity  of  the  parabolic  style.  In  the 
first  place,  some  degree  of  obscurity  necessarily  attends  those  pas- 
sages in  which  different  objects  are  applied  in  succession  to  the  il- 
lustration of  each  other,  without  any  express  marks  of  comparison  : 
of  this  we  have  had  an  example  in  the  parable  just  now  quoted,  and 
of  this  there  are  many  other  examples  in  the  sacred  writings.  I  will, 
nevertheless,  select  one  or  two,  which  are  deserving  of  our  attention 
for  their  peculiar  propriety  and  elegance  : 

"  Nubes,  et  ventus,  et  imber  nullus  ; 

"  Vir  sese  venditans  cum  inani  munere."6 

The  following  is  in  a  different  form  : 

"  Est  aurum,  et  gemmarum  copia ; 

"  At  pretiosa  suppellex  labia  scientiae."7 

Again,  obscurity  is  almost  inevitable,  when  the  subject  itself,  to 
which  the  imagery  appertains  and  alludes,  is  removed  out  of  sight, 
and  the  sentiment  assumes  the  form  of  allegory.  Horace  expresses 
a  very  common  precept  in  plain  language  : 

"  Sperne  voluptates  ;  nocet  empta  dolore  voluptas  :8 
But  with  how  much  more  elegance  does  Solomon  deliver  the  same 
precept  in  a  figurative  manner,  and  under  the  veil  of  allegory ! 

"  Invenistine  mel  ?    quod  modo  sat  erit  comede  ; 
"  Ne  eo  satiere,  etnausees."9 

Some  obscurity  also  attends  any  comparison  which  is  of  extensive 
application  :  of  this  the  following  seems  a  pertinent  example  : 

"  Ut  in  aquis  facies  faciei  [respondet], 

"  Sic  homini  cor  hominis  :"10 

This  is  certainly  very  difficult  to  apply  or  to  define,  since  it  may  re- 
fer in  many  different  views  to  the  faculties,  genius,  affections,  will, 
attachments,  manners,  virtues,  and  vices  of  men,  among  which  there 
generally  subsists  a  certain  agreement  or  similarity  from  imitation, 
and  from  habits  which  are  insensibly  caught  in  social  intercourse. 


"  Pater  ipse  colendi 


"  Haud  facilem  esse  viam  voluit,  primusque  per  artem 
"  Movit  agros,  curis  acuens  mortalia  cordia  : 
"  Nee  torpere  gravi  passus  sua  regna  veterno." 

6  PROV.  xxv.  14.  7  PROV.  xx.  15.  8  LIB.  i.  Ep.  ii.  v.  55. 

9  PROV.  xxv.  16.  10  PROV.  xxvii.  19. 


204  DIDACTIC    POETRY.  LECT.  XXIV. 

Lastly,  not  to  dwell  too  long  upon  this  subject,  some  obscurity  suc- 
ceeds, when  the  principal,  or  perhaps  the  whole  force  of  a  proverb  or 
parable,  does  not  lie  in  the  direct  and  literal  sense,  but  in  something 
not  immediately  expressed,  which  is  however  concomitant  with  it : 

"  Aurem  audientem,  et  oculum  videntem, 
"  Utrumque  eorum  fecit  Iehova."U 

To  dwell  upon  the  external  and  literal  sense  of  this  proverb,  will  only 
bewilder  the  reader  in  the  dubious  turn  of  the  expression  ;  but  how 
sublime,  how  profitable,  is  the  sentiment,  when  it  comes  from  the 
pen  of  the  Psalmist,  embellished  with  his  usual  perspicuity  and  ani- 
mation ? 

"  Qui  plantavit  aurem,  nonne  ipse  audiet : 
"  Qui  formavit  oculum,  nonne  ipse  videbit  ?"12 

The  last  quality  that  I  shall  mention  as  essential  to  a  parable  or 
proverb,  is  elegance ;  which  is  not  inconsistent  with  brevity,  or  in- 
deed with  some  degree  of  obscurity.  I  speak  of  elegance  as  it  re- 
spects the  sentiment,  the  imagery,  and  the  diction,  and  of  its  union 
with  all  these  we  have  already  had  sufficient  proof  in  all  the  para- 
bles which  have  been  quoted  in  the  course  of  this  Lecture.  It  may 
however  be  proper  to  remark  in  this  place,  that  even  those  proverbs, 
which  are  the  plainest,  most  obvious,  and  simple,  which  contain 
nothing  remarkable  either  in  sentiment  or  style,  are  not  to  be  es- 
teemed without  their  peculiar  elegance,  if  they  possess  only  brevity, 
and  that  neat,  compact  form,  and  roundness  of  period,  which  alone 
are  sufficient  to  constitute  a  parable.  Such  is  the  maxim  quoted  by 
David  in  the  sacred  history  as  an  ancient  proverb  : 

"  A  sceleratis  prodibit  scelus  :"13 
Such  is  that  of  Solomon  : 

"  Odium  suscitabit  rixas ; 

"  Sed  omnia  delicta  operiet  amor  :"14 

and  many  others  which  might  easily  be  produced  from  the  same 
author. 

There  is  another  didactic  work  of  Solomon,  entitled  n^nj?  (Ec- 
clesiastes)  or  the  Preacher  ;  or  rather  perhaps,  Wisdom  the  Preach- 
er, the  general  tenor  and  style  of  which  is  very  different  from  the 
book  of  Proverbs,  though  there  are  many  detached  sentiments  and 
proverbs  interspersed.  For  the  whole  work  is  uniform,  and  confin- 

11  PROV.  xx.  12.  12  PSALM  xciv.  9. 

13  1  SAM.  xxiv.  13.  14  PROV.  x.  12. 


LECT.  XXIV.  DIDACTIC  POETRY.  205 


ed  to  one  subject,  namely,  the  vanity  of  the  world  exemplified  by  the 
experience  of  Solomon,  who  is  introduced  in  the  character  of  a  per- 
son investigating  a  very  difficult  question,  examining  the  arguments 
on  either  side,  and  at  length  disengaging  himself  from  an  anxious 
and  doubtful  disputation.  It  would  be  very  difficult  to  distinguish 
the  parts  and  arrangement  of  this  production ;  the  order  of  the  sub- 
ject and  the  connexion  of  the  arguments  are  involved  in  so  much  ob- 
scurity, that  scarcely  any  two  commentators  have  agreed  concerning 
the  plan  of  the  work,  and  the  accurate  division  of  it  into  parts  or 
sections.  The  truth  is,  the  laws  of  methodical  composition  and  ar- 
rangement were  neither  known  by  the  Hebrews,  nor  regarded  in 
their  didactic  writings.  They  uniformly  retained  the  old  senten- 
tious manner,  nor  did  they  submit  to  method,  even  where  the  occa- 
sion appeared  to  demand  it.  The  style  of  this  work  is,  however, 
singular  ;  the  language  is  generally  low,  I  might  almost  call  it  mean 
or  vulgar  ;  it  is  frequently  loose,  unconnected,  approaching  to  the 
incorrectness  of  conversation ;  and  possesses  very  little  of  the  poeti- 
cal character,  even  in  the  composition  and  structure  of  the  periods : 
which  peculiarity  may  possibly  be  accounted  for  from  the  nature  of 
the  subject.  Contrary  to  the  opinion  of  the  Rabbies,  Ecclesiastes 
has  been  classed  among  the  poetical  books ;  though  if  their  authority 
and  opinions  were  of  any  weight  or  importance,  they  might,  perhaps, 
on  this  occasion,  deserve  some  attention. (B) 

Some  of  the  Psalms  also  belong  properly  to  this  class ;  the  al- 
phabetical, for  instance,  with  some  others.  The  alphabetical  or 
acrostic  form  of  composition  has  been  more  than  once  alluded  to  in 
the  course  of  these  lectures.  The  chief  commendation  of  these 
poems,  is,  that  they  are  excellently  accommodated  to  ordinary  use  ; 
that  the  sentiments  are  serious,  devout,  and  practical ;  the  language 
chaste  and  perspicuous ;  the  composition  neat,  and  regularly  adapt- 
ed to  the  sententious  form. 

There  are  extant,  besides  these,  two  other  considerable  works  of 
the  didactic  kind,  which  the  Hebrew  poetry  may  legally  claim, 
though  they  are  only  extant  iii  Greek  prose.  I  mean,  the  Wisdom 
of  the  Son  of  Sirach,  and  that  which  is  entitled,  the  Wisdom  of 
Solomon. 

The  work  of  the  Son  of  Sirach,  translated  from  the  Hebrew  into 
Greek,  by  one  of  the  descendants  of  the  author,  is  altogether  of  the 
same  kind  with  the  Proverbs  of  Solomon  ;  insomuch,  that  it  origi- 
nally bore  the  same  title  (d"1";:^^)  as  we  learn  from  Jerome,  who  di- 


206  DIDACTIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXIV. 

rectly  asserts,  that  he  had  seen  the  book  in  Hebrew  ;15  and  I  see  no 
reason  why  his  assertion  should  not  relate  to  the  original  Hebrew 
copy,  rather  than  to  any  Syriac  version.  However  this  may  be,  it  is 
clear,  even  from  the  Greek  translation,  which  we  have,  that  the 
book  in  every  respect  resembles  the  Proverbs  of  Solomon,  as  nearly 
as  an  imitation  can  resemble  an  original.  There  is  a  great  similari- 
ty in  the  matter,  the  sentiments,  and  the  diction  ;  the  complex- 
ion of  the  style,  and  the  construction  of  the  periods,  are  quite  the 
same ;  so  that  I  cannot  entertain  a  doubt,  that  the  author  actually 
adopted  the  same  mode  of  versification,  whatever  it  was,  if  we  can 
admit  that  any  knowledge  of  the  Hebrew  metres  was  extant  at  the 
time  when  he  is  supposed  to  have  written.  For  all  that  we  are  able 
to  conjecture  on  this  head  we  are  indebted  to  the  great  fidelity  of 
the  translator,  which  is  abundantly  manifested  in  every  part  of  the 
work.  He  seems  indeed  not  at  all  to  have  affected  the  elegancies  of 
the  Greek  language,  but  to  have  performed  his  duty  with  the  most 
religious  regard  to  the  Hebrew  idiom ;  he  not  only  exhibits  faithful- 
ly the  sentiments,  but  seems  even  to  have  numbered  the  words,  and 
exactly  to  have  preserved  their  order  :  so  that,  were  it  literally  and 
accurately  to  be  re-translated,  I  have  very  little  doubt  that,  for  the 
most  part,  the  original  diction  would  be  recovered.  If  any  person 
will  make  the  experiment  on  a  small  scale,  he  will  readily  discern 
the  perfect  coincidence  of  this  composition  with  the  most  ancient 
specimens  of  the  didactic  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  ;  so  exact  indeed  is 
the  agreement  both  in  form  and  character,  that  the  reader  might, 
without  much  difficulty,  be  persuaded  that  he  was  perusing  the  com- 
positions of  another  Solomon.  This  author  is  however  an  imitator 
chiefly  of  the  former  part  of  the  book  of  Proverbs  :  for  there  is  more 
connexion  and  order  in  the  sentiments ;  the  style  is  also  more  high- 
ly coloured,  and  abounds  more  in  imagery  and  figures  than  the  di- 
dactic poetry  of  the  Hebrews  in  general  requires.  As  an  instance,  I 
need  only  mention  that  admirable  personification  of  Wisdom  exhib- 
ited by  him,  in  which  he  has  so  happily  adopted  the  manner  of  his 
great  predecessor.16 

The  Wisdom  of  Solomon  is  also  composed  in  imitation  of  that 
prince  of  didactic  writers,  but  with  a  degree  of  success  very  unequal 
indeed  to  that  of  the  Son  of  Sirach.  It  is  not,  like  the  book  which 
bears  his  name,  a  translation  from  the  Hebrew,  but  is  evidently  the 

15  Praef.  in  Libros  Salomonis.  16  ECCLUS.  xxiv. 


LECT.  XXIV.  DIDACTIC  POETRY.  207 

performance  of  some  .Hellenistic  Jew,  and  originally  written  in 
Greek.  The  style  is  very  unequal  ;  it  is  often  pompous  and  turgid, 
as  well  as  tedious  and  diffuse,  and  abounds  in  epithets,  directly  con- 
trary to  the  practice  of  the  Hebrews  ;  it  is  however  sometimes  tem- 
perate, poetical,  and  sublime.  TPhe  construction  is  occasionally  sen- 
tentious, and  tolerably  accurate  in  'tiuit  respect,  so  as  to  discover 
very  plainly  that  the  author  had  the  old  Hebrew  poetry  for  his  mod- 
el, though  he  fell  far  short  of  its  beauty  and  sublimity.  The  econo- 
my of  the  work  is  still  more  faulty  ;  he  continues  the  prayers  of  Sol- 
omon from  the  ninth  chapter  to  the  very  end  of  the  book  ;  and  they 
consequently  take  up  more  than  one  half  of  the  whole.  But  beside 
the  tediousness  of  such  a  harangue,  he  indulges  in  too  great  a  sub- 
tilty  of  disquisition  upon  abstruse  subjects,  and  mingles  many  things 
very  foreign  to  the  nature  of  an  address  to  the  Deity  :  and  after  all, 
the  subject  itself  is  brought  to  no  perfect  conclusion.  On  these  ac- 
counts I  agree  with  those  critics,  who  slSppose  this  book  to  be  a 
much  more  modern  production  than  that  of  the  Son  of  Sirach,  and 
to  have  been  composed  in  a  less  enlightened  age. 

That  I  may  not  dismiss  the  subject  without  exhibiting  a  speci- 
men of  some  complete  poem  of  the  kind,-  such  as  I  have  hitherto 
given,  I  shall  add  to  this  lecture  a  Hebrew  translation  of  a  part  of 
Ecclesiasticus,  namely,  that  elegant  personification  of  Wisdom  I 
lately  mentioned  ;  in  which  I  have  endeavoured  as  much  as  possible 
to  preserve,  or  rather  restore,  the  form  and  character  of  the  original. 

THE    TWENTY-FOURTH    CHAPTER    OP    ECCLESIASTICUS. 


J-PB  nns>n 


trn  " 
a?  b 
fiy 


208  DIDACTIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXIV 

:  "ba*  •"»  nbniai 


aiana 


bins*  tfb 
vasb 


n  p  ^533 


:  inbni  mn^  pbna 


nsabin 
""235? 


p*jn/a 


b  •'a 


isb  msta  n-nn 
mbnpab  nbna 


LECT.  XXIV.  DIDACTIC  POETRY.  209 

:  -pap 


n  rtbs 


:  J-D-I  airrna  rr 
^i^a  o^a  auiai 
:  OT1D3  in^at11  Jib 


nn^n 

t  B 


''b  «b  "' 
(c);  na^  "icpia  ;ob  fitf 


OF   LYRIC  POETRY. 


LECTURE  XXV. 

OP  THE  HEBREW  ODE  IN  GENERAL  J     AND  FIRST  OF  THAT  CLASS,    THE 
CHARACTERISTICS  OF    WHICH    ARE  SWEETNESS    AND    ELEGANCE. 

Lyric  poetry  originated  from  the  most  jocund  and  pleasing  affections  of  the  human  mind  —  The 
most  ancient  species  of  poetry,  and  almost  coeval  with  human  nature  itself—  Particularly 
cultivated  by  the  Hebrews—  The  manner,  introduced  by  David,  of  singing  their  odes,  highly 
magnificent—  The  general  character  of  this  species  of  poetry:  its  principal  distinctions— 
w  The  first  character  of  the  ode,  sweetness  —  What  passions  and  affections  it  is  intended  to 
express  :  examples  from  the  Psalms—  The  cxxxiiid  Psalm  in  Latin  verse. 

THOSE  compositions  which  were  intended  for  music,  whether 
vocal  alone,  or  accompanied  with  instruments,  obtained  among  the 
Hebrews  the  appellation  of  *f  ty,  among  the  Greeks  that  of  ydy  ;  and 
both  these  words  have  exactly  the  same  power  and  signification. 
The  Hebrew  word,  as  well  as  the  Greek,  appears  in  course  of  time 
to  have  been  appropriated  to  denote  a  particular  form  and  species  of 
poetry,  with  this  difference,  however,  that  it  is  occasionally  used  with 
greater  latitude. 

The  ode  is  in  its  nature  sufficiently  expressive  of  its  origin.  It 
was  the  offspring  of  the  most  vivid,  and  the  most  agreeable  passions 
of  the  mind,  of  love,  joy,  and  admiration.  If  we  consider  man  on 
his  first  creation,  such  as  the  sacred  writings  represent  him  ;  in  per- 
fect possession  of  reason  and  speech  ;  neither  ignorant  of  his  own 
nor  of  the  divine  nature,  but  fully  conscious  of  the  goodness,  majes- 
ty, and  power  of  God  ;  not  an  unobservant  spectator  of  the  beauti- 
ful fabric  of  the  universe  ;  is  it  not  probable,  that  on  the  contempla- 
tion of  these  objects,  his  heart  would  glow  with  gratitude  and  love  ? 
And  is  it  not  probable,  that  the  effect  of  such  an  emotion  would  be 
an  effusion  of  praise  to  his  great  Creator,  accompanied  with  a  suita- 
ble energy  and  exaltation  of  voice  ?  Such  indeed  were  the  sensations 
experienced  by  the  author  of  that  most  beautiful  Psalm,  in  which  the 


LECT.  XXV.  LYRIC  POETRY.  211 

whole  creation  is  invited  to  celebrate  the  glory  of  the  most  high 
God: 

"  Laudate  lehovam  coelites ; 

"  Laudate  eum  in  excelsis  ; 

"  Laudate  eura  omnes  angeli  eius ; 

"  Laudate  eum  omnes  eius  exercitus."1 

This  hymn  is,  therefore,  most  elegantly  imitated,  and  put  into  the 
mouth  of  Adam  by  our  countryman  Milton,2  who  is  justly  accounted 
the  next  in  sublimity  to  those  poets,  who  wrote  under  the  influence 
of  divine  inspiration.  Indeed  we  scarcely  seem  to  conceive  rightly 
of  that  original  and  perfect  state  of  man,  unless  we  assign  him  some 
of  the  aids  of  harmony  and  poetical  expression,  to  enable  him  to  tes- 
tify in  terms  becoming  the  dignity  of  the  subject,  his  devout  affec- 
tions towards  his  infinite  Creator. 

Without  carrying  our  researches,  however,  to  objects  so  remote 
.from  human  information,  if  we  appeal  only  to  the  common  testimo- 
ny of  history,  we  shall  find  that,  among  every  people  not  utterly 
barbarous,  the  use  of  music  and  poetry  in  the  celebration  of  their 
religious  mysteries,  has  prevailed  from  the  first  periods  of  society. 
Of  all  that  sacred  melody,  which  Plato  informs  us  was  sometimes  estab- 
lished by  the  solemn  sanction  of  legal  authority,3  he  assigns  the  first 
rank  to  that  which  assumed  the  form  of  addresses  to  the  Deity,  and 
was  distinguished  by  the  appellation  of  Hymns.  In  all  the  Latin 
poetry,  there  is  nothing  that  can  boast  equal  antiquity  with  the  Sa- 
lian  poems  of  Num'a,  composed  by  that  wise  and  learned  monarch 
on  the  first  institution  of  his  religious  rites,  and  sung  by  the  Salii, 
whom  Dionysius  styles  "  the  chorus  of  the  gods  of  war,"4  with  sol- 
emn dancing  and  other  religious  ceremonies.  There  is  scarcely 
any  necessity  to  mention,  that  the  most  ancient  of  all  poems  extant 
(those  I  mean  of  which  the  date  is  ascertained,  and  which  deserve 
the  name  of  poems)  is  the  thanksgiving  ode  of  Moses  on  passing 
the  Red  Sea,  the  most  perfect  in  its  kind,  and  the  true  and  genuine 
effusion  of  the  joyful  affections.  Thus  the  origin  of  the  ode  may  be 
traced  into  that  of  the  poetry  itself,  and  appears  to  be  coeval  with 
the  commencement  of  religion,  or  more  properly  the  creation  of 
man.  (A) 

The  Hebrews  cultivated  this  kind  of  poetry  above  every  other  > 
and  therefore  may  well  be  supposed  to  have  been  peculiarly  excel- 

1  Ps.  cxlviii.  2  Paradise  Lost,  Lib.  v. 

3  De  Legibus,  iii.  4  Antiq.  Rom.  ii.  70. 


212  LYRIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXV. 

lent  in  it.  It  was  usual  in  every  period  of  that  nation  to  celebrate 
in  songs  of  joy  their  gratitude  to  God,  their  Saviour,  for  every  for- 
tunate event,  and  particularly  for  success  in  war.  Hence  the  tri- 
umphal odes  of  Moses,  of  Deborah,  of  David.  The  schools  of  the 
prophets  were  also,  in  all  probability,  coeval  with  the  republic  ;  and 
were  certainly  antecedent  to  the  monarchy  by  many  years  :  there,  as 
we  have  already  seen,  the  youth,  educated  in  the  prophetic  disci- 
pline, applied  themselves,  among  other  studies,  particularly  to  sacred 
poetry,  and  celebrated  the  praises  of  Almighty  God  in  lyric  compo- 
sitions, accompanied  with  music.  Under  the  government  of  David, 
however,  the  arts  of  music  and  poetry  were  in  their  most  flourishing 
state.  By  him  no  less  than  four  thousand  singers  or  musicians  were 
appointed  from  among  the  Levites,  under  two  hundred  and  eighty- 
eight  principal  singers,  or  leaders  of  the  band,  and  distributed  into 
twenty-four  companies,  who  officiated  weekly  by  rotation  in  the  tem- 
ple, and  whose  whole  business  was  to  perform  the  sacred  hymns  ; 
the  one  part  chanting  or  singing,  and  the  other  playing  upon  differ- 
ent instruments.  The  chief  of  these  were  Asaph,  Heman,  and  Idu- 
thun,  who  also,  as  we  may  presume  from  the  titles  of  the  Psalms, 
were  composers  of  Hymns.5  From  so  very  splendid  an  establish- 
ment, so  far  surpassing  every  other  appointment  of  the  kind,  some 
reasonable  conjectures  may  be  formed  concerning  the  original  digni- 
ty and  grandeur  of  the  Hebrew  ode.  We  must  remember,  too,  that 
we  at  present  possess  only  some  ruins,  as  it  were,  of  that  magnifi- 
cent fabric,  deprived  of  every  ornament,  except  that  splendour  and 
elegance,  which,  notwithstanding  the  obscurity  that  antiquity  has 
cast  over  them,  still  shine  forth  in  the  sentiments  and  language. 
Hence,  in  treating  of  the  Hebrew  ode,  we  must  be  content  to  omit 
entirely  what  relates  to  the  sacred  music,  and  the  nature  of  the  in- 
struments which  accompanied  the  vocal  performance  ;  though  there 
is  the  utmost  probability,  that  these  circumstances  were  not  without 
their  influence,  as  far  as  respects  the  form  and  construction  of  the 
different  species  of  ode.  Our  information  upon  these  subjects  is,  in- 
deed, so  very  scanty,  that  I  esteem  it  safer  to  be  silent  altogether  con- 
cerning them,  than  to  imitate  the  example  of  some  of  the  learned, 
who,  after  saying  much,  have,  in  fact,  said  nothing.  I  shall  therefore 
proceed  to  a  brief  inquiry  into  the  general  nature  and  properties  of  this 
species  of  poetry  ;  and  after  that,  we  shall  be  better  qualified  to  judge 

5  1  CHRON.  xxiii.  xxv.  1 — 7.     See  also  2  CHRON.  xxix.  30. 


LECT.  XXV.  LYRIC  POETRV. 


of  those  specimens  which  have  been  transmitted  to  us  by  the  He- 
brew writers. 

Of  all  the  different  forms  of  poetical  composition,  there  is  none 
more  agreeable,  harmonious,  elegant,  diversified,  and  sublime,  than 
the  ode  ;  and  these  qualities  are  displayed  in  the  order,  sentiments, 
imagery,  diction,  and  versification.  The  principal  beauty  of  an  ode 
consists  in  the  order  and  arrangement  of  the  subject  ;  but  this  ex- 
cellence, while  it  is  easily  felt,  is  difficult  to  be  described,  for  there  is 
this  peculiarity  attending  it,  that  the  form  of  the  ode  is  by  no  means 
confined  to  any  certain  rule  for  the  exact  and  accurate  distribution 
of  the  parts.  It  is  lively  and  unconstrained  :  when  the  subject  is 
sublime,  it  is  impetuous,  bold,  and  sometimes  might  almost  deserve 
the  epithet  licentious  as  to  symmetry  and  method  :  but  even  in  this 
case,  and  uniformly  in  every  other,  a  certain  facility  and  ease  must 
pervade  the  whole,  which  may  afford  at  least  the  appearance  of  un- 
affected elegance,  and  seem  to  prefer  nature  to  art.  This  appear- 
ance is  best  preserved  by  an  exordium  plain,  simple,  and  expressive  ; 
by  a  display  and  detail  of  incidents  and  sentiments  rising  delicately 
and  artfully  from  each  other,  yet  without  any  appearance  of  art  ;  and 
by  a  conclusion  not  pointed  or  epigrammatic,  but  finishing  by  a  gen- 
tle turn  of  the  sentiment  in  a  part  where  it  is  least  expected,  and 
sometimes  as  it  were  by  chance.  Thus  it  is  not  the  metre  or  versi- 
fication which  constitutes  this  species  of  composition  ;  for  unless  all 
these  circumstances  be  adverted  to,  it  is  plain  that  whatever  be  the 
merit  of  the  production,  it  cannot  with  any  propriety  be  termed  an 
ode.  Many  of  the  odes  of  Horace  are  entirely  in  this  form,  as  well 
as  almost  all  of  those  few  which  our  countryman  Hannes  has  left  be- 
hind him.  There  are  two  lyric  poems  in  the  Sylvse  of  Papinius  Sta- 
tius,6  of  which  the  versification  is  full,  sonorous,  and  flowing  ;  the 
sentiments  elegant  ;  the  »  diction,  if  not  highly  polished,  yet  ardent 
and  glowing  ;  on  the  whole,  however,  the  form,  the  grace,  the  ex- 
press manner  of  the  ode  is  wanting. 

The  sentiments  and  imagery  must  be  suitable  to  the  nature  of 
the  subject  and  the  composition,  which  is  varied  and  unconfined  by 
strict  rule  or  method.  On  familiar  subjects  they  will  be  sprightly, 
florid,  and  agreeable  ;  on  sublime  topics,  solemn,  bold,  and  vivid  ;  on 
every  subject,  highly  elegant,  expressive,  and  diversified.  Imagery 
from  natural  objects  is  peculiarly  adapted  to  the  ode  ;  historical 


6  Lib.  iv.  Sylv.  5  and 


214  LYRIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXV. 

common-places  may  also  be  admitted,  as  well  as  descriptions  lively 
but  short,  and  (when  it  rises  to  any  uncommon  strain  of  sublimity) 
frequent  personifications.  The  diction  must  be  choice  and  elegant, 
it  must  be  also  luminous,  clear,  and  animated ;  it  must  possess  some 
elegancies  peculiar  to  itself,  and  be  as  distinct  from  the  common  lan- 
guage of  poetry,  as  the  form  and  fashion  of  the  production  is  from 
the  general  cast  of  poetical  composition.  In  this  that  happiness  of 
expression,  for  which  Horace  is  so  justly  celebrated,  wholly  consists. 
A  sweetness  and  variety  in  the  versification  is  indispensable,  accord- 
ing to  the  nature  of  the  language,  or  as  the  infinite  diversity  of  sub- 
jects may  require. 

It  is  much  to  be  lamented,  that  in  treating  of  the  Hebrew  ode, 
we  must  of  necessity  be  silent  concerning  the  numbers  or  versifica- 
tion, which  (though  we  are  almost  totally  ignorant  of  its  nature  and 
principles)  we  have  the  utmost  reason  to  suppose  was  accommodat- 
ed to  the  music,  and  agreeable  to  the  genius  of  the  language.  In 
every  other  respect,  as  the  force  and  elegance  of  the  language,  the 
beauty  and  dignity  of  the  sentiments  and  imagery,  the  different 
graces  and  excellencies  of  order  and  arrangement,  I  shall  not  hesi- 
tate to  prefer  the  Hebrew  writers  to  the  lyric  poets  of  every  other  na- 
tion. But  lest  we  should  dubiously  wander  in  so  extensive  a  field, 
it  will  be  proper  to  prescribe  some  kind  of  limit  to  our  course,  which 
may  be  conveniently  done,  by  distributing  all  the  diversities  of  this 
species  of  composition  into  three  general  classes.  Of  the  first  class 
the  general  characteristic  will  be  sweetness,  of  the  last  sublimity  ; 
and  between  these  we  may  introduce  one  of  a  middle  nature,  as  par- 
taking of  the  properties  of  both.  The  qualities  which  may  be  ac- 
counted common  to  all  the  three  classes,  are  variety  and  elegance. (B) 

Although  the  lyric  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  is  always  occupied  up- 
on serious  subjects,  nor  ever  descends  to  that  levity  which  is  admit- 
ted into  that  of  other  nations,  the  character  of  sweetness  is  by  no 
means  inconsistent  with  it.  The  sweetness  of  the  Hebrew  ode  con- 
sists in  the  gentle  and  tender  passions  which  it  excites  ;  in  the  gay 
and  florid  imagery,  and  in  the  chaste  and  unostentatious  diction, 
which  it  employs.  The  passions  which  it  generally  affects,  are  those 
of  love,  tenderness,  hope,  cheerfulness,  and  pensive  sorrow.  In  the 
sixty-third  Psalm  the  royal  prophet,  supposed  to  be  then  an  exile  in 
the  wilderness,  expresses  most  elegantly  the  sentiments  of  tender- 
ness and  love.  The  voice  of  grief  and  complaint  is  tempered  with 
the  consolations  of  hope  in  the  eightieth  Psalm  :  and  the  ninety-sec- 


LECT.  XXV.  LYRIC  POETRY.  215 

ond  consists  wholly  of  joy,  which  is  not  less  sincere,  because  it  is 
not  excessive.  The  sweetness  of  all  these  in  composition,  senti- 
ment, diction,  and  arrangement,  has  never  been  equalled  by  the  fin- 
est productions  of  all  the  heathen  Muses  and  Graces  united.  Though 
none  of  the  above  are  deficient  in  imagery,  I  must  confess  I  have 
never  met  with  any  image  so  truly  pleasing  and  delightful  as  the  fol- 
lowing description  of  the  Deity  in  the  character  of  a  shepherd  : 

"  lehova  est  pastor  rneus,  nihil  mihi  deerit  : 

"  In  pascuis  herbidis  ut  recubem  faciet  ; 

"  Propter  aquas  leniter  fluentes  me  deducet.  "7(c) 

How  graceful  and  animated  is  that  rich  and  flourishing  picture  of 
nature,  which  is  exhibited  in  the  sixty-fifth  Psalm  !  when  the  proph- 
et, with  a  fertility  of  expression  correspondent  to  the  subject,  praises 
the  beneficence  of  the  Deity  in  watering  the  earth  and  making  it 
fruitful.  On  a  sublime  subject  also,  but  still  one  of  the  gay  and  a- 
greeable  kind,  I  mean  the  inauguration  of  Solomon,  which  is  cele- 
brated in  the  seventy-second  Psalm,  there  is  such  variety  and  beau- 
ty of  imagery,  such  a  splendour  of  diction,  such  elegance  in  the  com- 
position, that  I  believe  it  will  be  impossible  in  the  whole  compass  of 
literature,  sacred  or  profane,  to  find  such  an  union  of  sublimity  with 
sweetness  and  grace. 

These  few  select  examples  of  the  elegant  and  beautiful  in  lyric 
composition,  I  have  pointed  out  for  your  more  attentive  considera- 
tion ;  and  I  am  of  opinion,  that  in  all  the  treasures  of  the  Muses  you 
will  seek  in  vain  for  models  more  perfect.  I  will  add  one  other 
specimen,  which,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  is  expressive  of  the  true  lyric 
form  and  character  ;  and  compresses  in  a  small  compass  all  the  mer- 
its and  elegance  incidental  to  that  species  of  composition.  It  is,  if 
I  may  be  allowed  to  use  the  expression  of  a  very  polite  writer, 

mSaxo?  t£  iSQfjg  oliyr]  lifiaq,  aXQov  aorrov.8 

The  Psalmist  contemplating  the  harmony  which  pervaded  the  sol- 
emn assembly  of  the  people,  at  the  celebration  of  one  of  their  festi- 
vals, expresses  himself,  nearly  as  follows  : 

O  dulce  iucundumque  !  tribulium 

Coetu  in  frequent!  mutua  caritas  ! 

O  corda  qui  fraterna  nodo 

lungit  amor  metuente  solvi  ! 
Non  aura  Nardi  suavior  occupat 
Sensus,  quae  Aronis  vertice  de  sacro 

7  PSALM  xxiii.  1.  9  CALLIMACH.  Hymn,  in  Apoll.  v.  112. 

c- 


LYRIC  POETRY.  LECT.  XXV. 


Per  ora,  per  barbam,  per  ipsas, 

Lenta  fluens,  it  odora  vestes  : 
Non  rore  largo  laetior  irrigat 
Hermona  florentem  aetherius  liquor  ; 
Sanctaeque  foecundat  Sionis 
Uberibus  iuga  celsa  guttis, 
Praesens  benigno  numine  quas  fovet 
lehova  sedes  ;  alma  ubi  Faustitas 
Testatur,  aeternumque  magni 
Dia  salus  domini  favorem.(D) 


LECTURE  XXTI. 


THE  INTERMEDIATE    OR  MIXED    STYLE  OF    THE  HEBREW  ODE. 

The  lyric  poetry  of  the  intermediate  or  mixed  style  consists  of  an  union  of  sweetness  and  sub- 
limity— The  ninety-first  and  eighty-first  Psalms  explained  and  critically  illustrated — Of  the 
digressions  of  the  Hebrew  poets,  also  of  Pindar  ;  not  upon  the  same  principle — A  criticism 
upon  the  seventy-seventh  Psalm — The  nineteenth  Psalm  in  Latin  verse. 

HAVING  dismissed  the  subject  of  the  more  beautiful  species  of 
ode,  in  order  to  proceed  by  proper  stages  to  what  I  deem  the  sum- 
mit of  excellence  and  sublimity  in  the  lyric  poetry  of  the  Hebrews, 
it  will  be  necessary  to  rest  a  while,  and  to  bestow  some  little  atten- 
tion upon  that  middle  style  of  composition,  to  which  I  adverted  as 
constituting  one  of  the  grand  divisions  of  this  order  of  poems.  This 
again  may  be  considered  as  admitting  of  a  subdivision,  as  including 
both  those  lyric  compositions,  in  which  sweetness  and  sublimity  are 
so  uniformly  blended,  that  every  part  of  the  poem  may  be  said  to 
partake  equally  of  both ;  and  those,  in  which  these  qualities  sepa- 
rately occur  in  such  a  manner,  that  the  complexion  of  the  poem  is 
altogether  changeable  and  diversified.  Of  each  species  I  shall  en 
deavour  to  produce  an  example  or  two.  * 

The  subject  of  the  ninety-first  Psalm  is  the  security,  the  success, 
and  the  rewards  of  piety.  The  exordium  exhibits  the  pious  man 
placing  all  his  dependence  upon  Almighty  God  : 

"  Qui  habitat  in  secrete  altissimi ; 

"  Qui  in  umbram  omnipotentis  sese  receptat : 

"  Qui  dicit  lehovae,  spes  mea  et  propugnaculum  meum ! 

"  Deus  meus,  in  quo  confidam  :" 

And  immediately  leaving  the  sentence  unfinished,  he  apostrophizes 
to  the  same  person,  whom  he  had  been  describing  : 

"  Ille  profecto  te  eripiet, 

"  E  laqueo  venatoris,  e  peste  exitiali." 

The  imagery  that  follows  is  beautiful  and   diversified,  and  at  the 
same  time  uncommonly  solemn  and  sublime  : 

"  Pennis  suis  te  proteget ; 
"  Sub  alis  eius  tutus  eris  : 


I 


218  LYRIC    POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXVI. 

"  Erit  tibi  pro  parma  et  clypeo  eius  veritas. 

"  Non  metues  a  terrore  nocturne ; 

"  A  sagitta  volitante  interdiu  : 

"  A  peste  in  tenebris  incedente  ; 

"  Ab  excidio  vastante  per  meridiem. 

"  Cadent  a  late  tuo  mille  ; 

"  Et  a  dextra  tua  decem  millia  : 

"  Ad  te  minime  pertinget." 

How  excellent  also  are  the  succeeding  images,  the  guard  of  angels, 
the  treading  under  foot  the  fiercest  and  most  formidable  animals  ; 
and  afterwards  that  sudden  but  easy  and  elegant  change  of  the 
persons ! 

"  Quoniam  mihi  adhaesit,  ideo  eum  eruam ; 

"  Exaltabo  eum,  quia  nomen  meum  agnovit." 

If  any  reader  will  carefully  weigh  and  consider  the  nature  and  digni- 
ty of  this  imagery,  having  due  respect  at  the  same  time  to  the  prin- 
ciples of  the  mystical  allegory,  I  am  persuaded  he  will  agree  with 
me,  that  something  of  a  mystical  design  is  concealed  under  the  lite- 
ral meaning  of  this  Psalm.  Without  a  question,  the  pious  person, 
the  king,  or  high  priest  perhaps,  who  in  the  literal  sense  is  the  prin- 
cipal character  of  the  poem,  is  meant  in  reality  to  represent  some 
greater  and  sublimer  personage.1  But  leaving  this  part  of  the  sub- 
ject to  the  investigation  of  the  divine,  I  submit  it  to  any  critic  of 
true  taste  and  discernment,  whether  the  third  ode  of  the  fourth  book 
of  Horace  (the  beauty  of  which  has  been  justly  celebrated,  and 
which  bears  a  great  resemblance  to  that  under  our  consideration)  is 
#ot  greatly  excelled  by  the  sacred  poet,  as  well  in  grace  and  ele- 
gance, as  in  force  and  dignity. (A) 

The  eighty-first  Psalm  will  serve  as  another  example  upon  this 
occasion,  being  pervaded  by  an  exquisite  union  of  sublimity  and 
sweetness.     It  is  an  ode  composed  for  the   feast  of  trumpets  in  the 
first  new  moon  of  the  civil  year.2     The  exordium  contains  an  exhor- 
tation to  celebrate  the  praises  of  the  Almighty  with  music  and  song, 
and  (as  is  frequent  in  these  productions  of  the  Hebrews)  is  replete 
with  animation  and  joy,  even  to  exultation  : 
"  Clangite  Deo  robori  nostro ; 
"  Laetum  clamorem  tollite  Deo  lacobi :" 

The  different  instruments  of  music  are  named,  as  is  common  in  the 
Jyric  compositions  of  all  other  nations : 

1  The  LXX.  CHALD.  VULG.  SYR.  ARAB.  J£THJOP.  prefix  the  name  of  David 
to  this  Psalm.     The  Jews  suppose  it  to  relate  to  the  Messiah.     See  also  MATT. 
iv.  6,  LUKE  iv.  10, 11. 

2  See  RELAND.  Antiq.  Heb.  iv.  7. 


LECT.  XXVI.  LYRIC  POETRY.  219 

"  EfFerte  psalterium,  adhibete  tympanum, 

"  Cytharam  amoenam  cum  nablio  :" 

The  trumpet  is  particularly  alluded  to,  because  the  solemn  use  of  it 
on  their  great  festivals  was  prescribed  by  the  Mosaic  law.  The 
commemoration  of  the  giving  of  the  law,  associated  with  the  sound 
of  the  trumpet  (which  was  the  signal  of  liberty)3  introduces,  in  a 
manner  spontaneously,  the  miseries  of  the  Egyptian  bondage,  the  re- 
covery of  their  freedom,  and  the  communication  with  God  upon 
mount  Sinai,  (the  awfulness  of  which  is  expressed  in  a  very  few 
words,  "  the  secret  place  of  thunder,")  and  finally  the  contention 
with  their  Creator  at  the  waters  of  Meribah.  The  mention  of  Meri- 
bah  introduces  another  idea,  namely,  the  ingratitude  and  contuma- 
cy of  the  Israelites,  who  appear  to  have  been  ever  unmindful  of  the 
favours  and  indulgence  of  their  heavenly  Benefactor.  The  remain- 
der of  the  ode,  therefore,  contains  an  affectionate  expostulation  of 
God  with  his  people,  a  confirmation  of  his  former  promises,  and  a 
tender  complaint  that  his  favourable  intentions  towards  them  have 
been  so  long  prevented  by  their  disobedience.  Thus  the  object  and 
end  of  this  poem  appears  to  be  an  exhortation  to  obedience  from  the 
consideration  of  the  paternal  love,  the  beneficence,  and  the  promises 
of  the  Deity  ;  and  we  have  seen  with  how  much  art,  elegance,  varie- 
ty, and  ingenuity,  this  is  accomplished.  In  order  to  complete  the 
beauty  of  this  composition,  the  conclusion  is  replete  with  all  the 
graces  of  sentiment,  imagery,  and  diction.  The  sudden  and  fre- 
quent change  of  persons  is  remarkable  ;  but  it  is  by  no  means  harsh 
or  obscure.  Some  allowance  is  however  to  be  made  for  the  Hebrew 
idiom,  as  well  as  for  the  state  of  the  author's  mind  :  he  is  not  under 
the  influence  of  art  but  of  nature  ;  through  the  impetuosity  of  pas- 
sion, therefore,  his  transitions  are  frequent  from  figure  and  allusion 
to  plain  language,  and  back  again,  with  a  kind  of  desultory  in- 
constancy. 

In  the  last  Lecture  I  treated  in  general  of  the  disposition  and  ar- 
rangement of  lyric  composition,  and  endeavoured,  in  some  degree, 
to  define  its  usual  symmetry  and  outline.  But  on  abstruse  and  dif- 
ficult subjects,  example  is  of  more  avail  than  the  utmost  accuracy  of 
description.  To  him,  therefore,  who  wishes  to  form  a  correct  idea 
of  this  kind  of  poem,  I  will  venture  to  recommend  the  Psalm  which 
we  have  just  examined ;  not  doubting,  that  if  he  can  make  himself 
master  of  its  general  character,  genius,  and  arrangement,  he  will  feel 
perfectly  satisfied  concerning  the  nature  and  form  of  a  perfect  ode. 

3  See  LEV.  xxiii.  24.  NUM.  xxix.  1.  and  LEV.  xxv.  9, 10. 


220  LYRIC   POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXVI. 

In  both  these  specimens,  the  style  and  cadence  of  the  whole 
poem  flow  in  one  equal  and  uniform  tenour ;  but  there  are  others, 
which  are  more  changeable  and  diversified,  more  unequal  both  in 
style  and  sentiment.  These,  although  they  occasionally  incline  to 
the  character  of  sweetness,  and  occasionally  to  that  of  sublimity, 
may  nevertheless  (though  upon  a  different  principle)  be  properly 
classed  among  the  odes  of  this  intermediate  style.  Such  are  those 
which,  from  a  mild  and  gentle  exordium,  rise  gradually  to  sublimity, 
both  in  the  subject  and  sentiments  ;  such  also  are  those,  which  com- 
mence in  a  mournful  strain,  and  conclude  with  exultation  and  tri- 
umph. Such,  in  fine,  are  all  those  in  which  the  style  or  matter  is 
in  any  respect  diversified  and  unequal.  This  inequality  of  style  is 
perfectly  consistent  with  the  nature  of  lyric  composition ;  for  variety 
is  one  of  the  greatest  ornaments,  if  not  essentials,  of  the  ode.  Since, 
therefore,  for  the  sake  of  variety,  lyric  writers  in  particular  are  in- 
dulged in  the  liberty  of  frequent  digressions ;  that  boldness  in  thus 
diverging  from  the  subject  is  not  only  excusable,  but  on  many  occa- 
sions is  really  worthy  of  commendation.  Possibly  a  brief  inquiry  in- 
to the  nature  of  those  liberties  which  the  Hebrew  poets  have  allowed 
themselves  in  this  respect,  or  rather  into  the  general  method  and 
principles  of  their  lyric  compositions,  will  not  be  thought  altogether 
unseasonable  in  this  place. 

By  far  the  greater  part  of  the  lyric  poetry  of  the  Hebrews,  is  oc- 
cupied wholly  in  the  celebration  of  the  power  and  goodness  of  Al- 
mighty God,  in  extolling  his  kindness  and  betteficence  to  his  chosen 
people,  and  in  imploring  his  assistance  and  favour  in  time  of  adversi- 
ty :  in  other  words,  the  usual  subjects  of  these  odes  are  so  connect- 
ed with  every  part  of  the  sacred  history,  as  to  afford  ample  scope 
for  those  digressions  which  are  most  pleasing,  and  most  congenial  to 
this  species  of  composition.  Thus,  whether  the  theme  be  gay  or 
mournful ;  whether  the  events  which  they  celebrate  be  prosperous 
or  adverse ;  whether  they  return  thanks  to  God  their  deliverer  for 
assistance  in  trouble,  or  with  the  humility  of  suppliants  acknowledge 
the  justice  of  the  divine  correction ;  the  memory  of  former  times 
spontaneously  occurs,  and  a  variety  of  incidents  and  circumstances, 
of  times,  of  seasons,  of  countries,  of  nations,  all  the  miracles  in 
Egypt,  in  the  wilderness,  in  Judea,  are  presented  to  their  recollec- 
tion :  and  all  these  so  naturally  connect  with  the  subject,  that  what- 
ever of  ornament  is  deduced  from  them,  so  far  from  appearing  for- 
eign to  it,  seems  rather  an  essential  part  of  the  principal  matter.  It 


LECT.  XXVI.  LYRIC  POETRY.  221 

may,  therefore,  be  with  modesty  asserted  of  the  Hebrew  ode,  that 
from  the  nature  of  the  subjects,  which  it  usually  embraces,  it  is  pos- 
sessed of  so  easy  an  access  to  some  of  the  most  elegant  sources  of 
poetical  imagery,  and  has  consequently  so  many  opportunities  for 
agreeable  digression ;  that  with  unbounded  freedom  and  uncommon 
variety,  are  united  the  most  perfect  order,  and  the  most  pleasing 
uniformity. 

The  happy  boldness  of  Pindar  in  his  digressions  is  deservedly 
celebrated ;  but  as  he  was  very  differently  situated  from  those  poets, 
who  are  at  present  under  our  consideration,  so  the  nature  of  his  sub- 
ject, and  the  principles  of  his  composition,  are  altogether  different 
from  theirs  ;  and  a  different  reason  is  to  be  assigned  for  the  liberties 
which  he  assumed  in  his  lyric  productions.     We  are  in  no  want  of 
materials  to  enable  us  to  form  a  perfect  judgement  of  the  genius  of 
Pindar  ;  there  are  about  forty  of  his  odes  remaining,  and  the  subject 
of  them  all  is  exactly  similar.     They  are  all  composed  in  celebra- 
tion of  some  victorious  chief,  whose  praise  is  heightened  and  illus- 
trated by  the  circumstances  of  his  birth,  ancestry,  manners,  or  coun- 
try.    Since,  therefore,  this  poet  was  professedly  the  herald  of  the 
Olympic  conquerors,  unless  he  had  determined  to  assume  great  lib- 
erty in  treating  of  those  topics,   and  even  on  some  occasions  to  have 
recourse  to  topics  very  foreign  to  the  principal  subject,  his  poems 
must  have  been  little  better  than  a  stale  and  disgusting  repetition. 
His  apology,  therefore,  is  necessity,  and  on  this  ground  he  has  ob- 
tained not  only  pard^b  but  commendation  ;  and  many  things,  which 
in  another  poet  could  neither  be  defended  nor  probably  endured,  in 
Pindar  have  been  approved  and  extolled.     Lest  I  should  seem  to  as- 
sert rashly  on  this  occasion,   I  will  explain  myself  by  an  example. 
The  third  of  the  Pythian  odes  is  inscribed  to  Hiero,  at  that  time  la- 
bouring under  a  grievous  and   chronical  disease.     The  poet  taking 
advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  impart  a  degree  of  variety  to  his 
poem,  introduces  it  with  a  solemn  address,  invoking  the  medical  aid 
of  Chiron  or  Esculapius,   if  it  be  possible  for  them  to  revisit  the 
earth.     But  surely,  on  such  an  occasion,  it  would  be  excusable  in  na 
writer  but  Pindar  to  expend  more  than  one  hundred  verses,  that  is, 
above  half  the  poem,   on  the   history  of  Esculapius.     Nor  indeed 
could  we  easily  pardon  it  in  Pindar  himself,  but  from  the  considera- 
tion that  he  had  already  written  an  ode  (the  fourth)  in  praise  of  the 
same  Hiero,  upon  a  victory  obtained  in  the  Olympic  games.     But 
we  are  willing  to  excuse  the  boldness  of  a  poet,  who,  even  with  a 


222  LYRIC    POETRY.  LECT,  XXVI. 

degree  of  rash  impetuosity,  escapes  from  such  narrow  limits  into  a 
more  spacious  field.  It  is,  therefore,  no  discommendation  of  the 
Hebrew  poets  to  say,  that  in  this  respect  they  are  materially  different 
from  Pindar  ;  nor  does  it  detract  from  the  merit  of  Pindar  to  assert, 
that,  from  the  more  favourable  circumstances  of  the  Hebrews,  their 
lyric  poetry  is  more  genuine  and  perfect. (B) 

The  seventy -seventh  Psalm  will  afford  some  illustration  of  what 
has  been  remarked  concerning  the  nature  and  economy  of  the  He- 
brew ode.  This  Psalm  is  composed  in  what  I  call  the  intermediate 
style,  and  is  of  that  diversified  and  unequal  kind  which  ascends  from 
a  cool  and  temperate  exordium  to  a  high  degree  of  sublimity.  The 
prophet,  oppressed  with  a  heavy  weight  of  affliction,  displays  the  ex- 
treme dejection  and  perturbation  of  his  soul,  and  most  elegantly  and 
pathetically  describes  the  conflicts  and  internal  contests  to  which  he 
is  subjected,  before  he  is  enabled  to  rise  from  the  depths  of  woe  to 
any  degree  of  hope  or  confidence.  In  the  character  of  a  suppliant 
he  first  pours  forth  his  earnest  prayers  to  the  God  of  his  hope  : 

"  Vox  mea  ad  Deum  fertur,  et  usque  inclamo  ; 

"  Vox  mea  ad  Deum,  ut  me  exaudiat :'' 

But  even  prayers  afford  him  no  sufficient  consolation.  He  next  en- 
deavours to  mitigate  his  sorrow  by  the  remembrance  of  former  times; 
but  this,  on  the  contrary,  only  seems  to  exaggerate  his  sufferings,  by 
the  comparison  of  his  present  adversity  with  his  former  happiness, 
and  extorts  from  him  the  following  pathetic  expostulation  : 

"  Num  in  perpetuum  reiiciet  me  Deus, 
"  Nee  amplius  se  placabilem  praebebit  ? 
"  Num  periit  in  aeternum  eius  dementia ; 
"  Defecit  promissio  in  omnes  aetates  ? 
"  Num  oblitus  est  misereri  Deus  ? 
"  An  cohibuit  in  ira  misericordias  suas  ?" 

Again,  recollecting  the  nature  of  the  divine  dispensations  in  chas- 
tising man,  "  the  change  of  the  right  hand  of  the  Most  High  ;"  in 
other  words,  the  different  methods  by  which  the  Almighty  seeks  the 
salvation  of  his  people,  appearing  frequently  to  frown  upon  and  per- 
secute those  "  in  whom  he  delighteth  :"  reconsidering  also  the  vast 
series  of  mercies  which  he  had  bestowed  upon  his  chosen  people  ; 
the  miracles  which  he  had  wrought  in  their  favour,  in  a  word,  the 
goodness,  the  holiness,  the  power  of  the  great  Ruler  of  the  universe  ; 
with  all  the  ardour  of  gratitude  and  affection,  he  bursts  forth  into  a 
strain  of  praise  and  exultation.  In  this  passage  we  are  at  a  loss 
Avhich  to  admire  most,  the  ease  and  grace  with  which  the  di- 


LECT.  XXVI.  LYRIC  POETRY.  223 

gresssion  is  made,  the  choice  of  the  incidents,  the  magnificence  of 
the  imagery,  or  the  force  and  elegance  of  the  diction. 

"  O  Deus  !  sancta  omnino  sunt  consilia  tua  : 

"  Quis  Deus  cum  Deo  majestate  comparandus  ? 

"  Tu  es  Deus  ille  faciens  rairabilia; 

"  Notum  fecisti  in  populis  robur  tuum. 

"  Vindicasti  brachio  populura  tuum, 

"  lacobi  et  losephi  posteros. 

"  Viderunt  te  aquae,  O  Deus  ! 

"  Viderunt  te  aquae,  contremuerunt; 

"  Etiam  turbatae  sunt  Abyssi. 

"  Exundaverunt  aquis  nubes  ; 

"  Fragorem  edidit  aether ; 

"  Turn  vero  sagittae  tuae  discurrerunt : 

"  Vox  tonitrus  tui  in  turbine  ; 

"  Illuxerunt  orbi  fulmina  ; 

"  Fremuit  et  commota  esttellus." 

The  other  example,  to  which  I  shall  refer  you  on  this  occasion, 
is  composed  upon  quite  a  different  plan ;  for  it  declines  gradually 
from  an  exordium  uncommonly  splendid  and  sublime,  to  a  gentler 
and  more  moderate  strain,  to  the  softest  expressions  of  piety  and  de- 
votion. The  whole  composition  abounds  with  great  variety  of  both 
sentiment  and  imagery.  You  will,  from  these  circumstances,  al- 
most conjecture  that  I  am  alluding  to  the  nineteenth  Psalm.  The 
glory  of  God  is  demonstrated  in  his  works  both  of  nature  and  provi- 
dence. By  exhibiting  it,  however,  in  an  entire  state,  though  ia 
modern  verse,  you  will  more  readily  perceive  the  order,  method,  and 
arrangement  of  this  beautiful  composition. 

PSALM    XIX. 

Immensi  chorus  aetheris, 
Orbes  stelliferi,  lucida  sidera, 

Laudes  concelebrant  Dei, 
Auctorisque  canunt  artificem  manum. 

Dulces  excipiunt  modos 
Noctem  rite  dies,  noxque  diem  prcmens  ; 

Alternoque  volubiles 
Concentu  variant  perpetuum  melos. 

Et  quanquam  levibus  rotis 
Labuntur  taciti  per  liquidum  aethera, 

Terrarum  tamen  ultimos 
Tractus,  alta  poli  moenia,  personat 

Aeterni  sacra  vox  chori, 
Concordi  memorans  eloquio  Deum. 

Coelorum  in  penetralibus 


224  LYRIC    POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXVI. 

Soli  qui  posuit  celsa  palatia  : 

Laetos  unde  ferens  gradus 
Prodit,  ceu  thalamo  sponsus  ab  aureo ; 

Fidens  viribus  ut  Gigas, 
Praescriptum  stadii  carpit  ovans  iter. 

Coeli  limite  ab  ultimo 
Egressus,  rediens  limitem  ad  ultimum, 

Emensam  relagit  viam, 
Foecundisque  fovet  cuncta  caloribus. 

Non  lex  sancta  Dei  minus 
Languentes  animas  vi  reficit  sacra  : 

Puri  lumine  lex  Dei 
Illustrans  oculos,  et  tenebras  fugans  ; 

Informans  animos  rudes, 
Coelestique  replens  corda  scientia  ; 

Mentes  laetificans  pias ; 
Confirmans  stabili  pectora  gaudio. 

Illam  justitia  et  fides 
Fixit  perpetuam,  aeternaque  veritas. 

Non  illam  aequiparat  pretio 
Aurum,  iam  rutilis  purius  e  focis ; 

Non  dulcedine,  quae  recens 
Stillant  pressa  favis  mella  liquentibus. 

Fida  adstat  monitrix  suis, 
Et  merces  eadem  magna,  clientibus. 

Quis  lapsus  tamen  ah  !  suos, 
Quis  secreta  sinu  crimina  perspicit  ? 

Adsis,  O  Deus  !  O  Pater  ! 
Da  caecis  veniam,  da  miseris  opera  ! 

Errantes  cohibe  gradus, 
Effraenemque  animi  frange  superbiam  ! 

Solum  munere  sic  tuo 
Mox  insons  sceleris,  purus  ero  mali : 

Sic  O  !  sic  placeant  tibi 
Quae  supplex  meditor,  quae  loquor,  O  Deus  !(c) 


LECTURE  XXVII. 


THE    SUBLIME    STYLE    OF    THE    HEBREW    ODE. 

The  third  species  of  the  Hebrew  ode,  the  characteristic  of  which  is  sublimity — This  sublimity 
results  from  three  sources — From  the  general  form  and  arrangement  of  the  poem,  exemplifi- 
ed in  the  fiftieth  and  twenty-fourth  Psalm — From  the  greatness  of  the  sentiments  and  the 
force  of  the  language — The  ode  of  Moses  on  passing  the  Red  Sea  explained  and  illustrated — 
The  brevity  of  the  Hebrew  style— The  twenty-ninth  Psalm  in  Latin  verse. 

SUBLIMITY  was  mentioned  as  the  characteristic  of  a  third  species 
of  the  Hebrew  ode.  But  having  already  treated  very  copiously  of 
the  sublime  in  general,  both  as  the  effect  of  sentiment  and  expres- 
sion, our  present  investigation  must  be  confined  to  that  which  is  pe- 
culiar to  this  species  of  poetry.  Now  the  sublimity  of  lyric  composi- 
tions results  either  from  the  plan,  the  order,  and  arrangement  of  the 
poem  ;  or  from  those  common  sources  which  I  formerly  specified, 
the  sentiments  and  the  style  ;  or,  in  some  cases,  from  an  union  of 
all,  when  an  aggregate  perfection  is  produced  from  the  beauty  of  the 
arrangement,  the  dignity  of  the  sentiments,  and  the  splendour  of  the 
diction.  I  shall  endeavour  to  exhibit  a  few  examples  in  each  kind ; 
and  indeed  this  subject  is  every  way  deserving  our  attention,  since  it 
relates  to  what  may  be  esteemed  the  perfection  of  the  Hebrew  poet- 
ry, for  its  chief  commendation  is  sublimity,  and  its  sublimest  species 
is  the  ode. 

1  Let  us  therefore  consider,  in  the  first  place,  what  degree  of  sub- 
limity the  mere  form  and  disposition  of  a  lyric  poem  can  impart  to  a 
subject  not  in  itself  sublime.  We  have  an  example  of  this  in  the 
fiftieth  Psalm ;  the  subject  of  which  is  of  the  didactic  kind,  and  be- 
longs to  the  moral  part  of  theology.  It  is  at  first  serious  and  practi- 
cal, with  very  little  of  sublimity  or  splendour  :  it  sets  forth,  that  the 
divine  favour  is  not  to  be  conciliated  by  sacrifices,  or  by  any  of  the 
external  rites  and  services  of  religion,  but  rather  by  sincere  piety, 
and  by  the  devout  effusions  of  a  grateful  heart :  and  yet,  that  even 
these  will  not  be  accepted  without  the  strictest  attention  to  justice, 
and  every  practical  virtue.  It  consists  therefore  of  two  parts :  in  the 
29 


LYRIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXVII. 


first  the  devout,  but  ignorant  and  superstitious  worshipper  is  reprov- 
ed ;  and  in  the  second,  the  hypocritical  pretender  to  virtue  and  relig- 
ion. Each  part  of  the  subject,  if  we  regard  the  imagery  and  the 
diction  only,  is  treated  rather  with  variety  and  elegance,  than  with 
sublimity  ;  but  if  the  general  effect,  if  the  plot  and  machinery  of  the 
whole  be  considered,  scarcely  any  thing  can  appear  more  truly  mag- 
nificent. The  great  Author  of  nature,  by  a  solemn  decree,  con- 
vokes the  whole  human  race,  to  be  witness  of  the  judgement  which 
he  is  about  to  execute  upon  his  people ;  the  august  tribunal  is  estab- 
lished in  Sion  : 

"  Deus  Deorum  lehova 
"  Locutus  est  et  convocavit  terram, 
"  Ab  ortu  soils  ad  eius  occasum  : 

"  Ex  Sione  perfectae  pulchritudinis  Deus  exortus  est." 
The  majesty  of  God  is  depicted  by  imagery  assumed  from  the  de- 
scent upon  mount  Sinai,  which,  as  I  formerly  observed,  is  one  of  the 
common-places  that  supply  ornaments  of  this  kind ; 
"  Adveniet  Deus  noster,  nee  silebit ; 
"  Praecedet  eum  ignis  edax, 
"  Et  circumfremet  vehemens  turbo." 

The  heavens  and  the  earth  are  invoked  as  witnesses,  which  is  a  pom- 
pous form  of  expression  common  with  the  Hebrew  writers  :l 

"  Advocabit  coelos  ex  alto  ; 

"  Et  terram,  ut  iudicio  contendat  cum  populo  suo." 

At  length  the  Almighty  is  personally  introduced  pronouncing  his 
sentence,  which  constitutes  the  remainder  of  the  ode  ;  and  the  ad- 
mirable sublimity  and  splendour  of  the  exordium  is  continued 
through  the  whole.  There  is  in  Horace  an  ode  upon  a  similar  sub- 
ject,2 and  it  is  not  enough  to  say,  that  he  has  treated  it  in  his  usual 
manner,  with  elegance  and  variety,  for  he  has  done  more  than  could 
be  expected  from  a  person  unenlightened  by  divine  truth,  he  has 
treated  it  with  piety  and  solemnity.  But  that  high  degree  of  sub- 
limity, to  which  the  Psalmist  rises  upon  such  occasions,  is  only  to 
be  attained  by  the  Hebrew  Muse ;  for  it  is  a  truth  universally  ac- 
knowledged, that  no  religion  whatever,  no  poetic  history,  is  provid- 
ed with  a  store  of  imagery  so  striking  and  so  magnificent,  so  capa- 
ble of  embellishing  a  scene,  which  may  be  justly  accounted  the  most 
sublime  that  the  human  imagination  is  able  to  comprehend. 

The  next  example,  which  I  shall  produce,  will  be  found  in  some 

l  Compare  DEUT.  xxxii.  1.    ISA.  i.  2.  2  Lib.  iii.  Od.  xxiii, 


LECT.  XXVII.  LYRIC  POETRY.  227 


measure  different  from  the  former,  inasmuch  as  the  subject  itself  is 
possessed  of  the  highest  dignity  and  splendour,  though  still  no  in- 
considerable part  of  the  sublimity  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  general 
plan  and  arrangement  of  the  poem.  The  induction  of  the  ark  of 
God  to  mount  Sion  by  David,  gave  occasion  to  the  twenty-fourth 
Psalm.3  The  removal  of  the  ark  was  celebrated  in  a  great  assem- 
bly of  the  people,  and  with  suitable  splendour  during  every  part  of 
the  ceremony.  The  Levites  led  the  procession,  accompanied  by  a 
great  variety  of  vocal  and  instrumental  music ;  and  this  ode  appears 
to  have  been  sung  to  the  people  when  they  arrived  at  the  summit  of 
the  mountain.  The  exordium  is  expressive  of  the  supreme  and  infi- 
nite dominion  of  God,  arising  from  the  right  of  creation  : 

"  lehovae  est  tellus  et  plenitude  eius  ; 

"  Orbis,  quique  eum  incolunt  : 

"  Ille  enim  supra  maria  eum  fundavit, 

"  Et  supra  flumina  eum  stabilivit." 

How  astonishing  the  favour  and  condescension  !  how  extraordinary 
the  testimony  of  his  love,  when  he  selected  from  his  infinite  domin- 
ion a  peculiar  seat,  and  a  people  for  himself!  What  a  copious  re- 
turn of  gratitude,  of  holiness,  of  righteousness,  and  of  human  vir- 
tues, does  such  an  obligation  demand  !  "  Behold,"  says  Moses,  ad- 
dressing the  Israelites,  "  the  heaven,  and  the  heaven  of  heavens,  is 
JEHOVAH'S,  thy  God,  the  earth  also,  and  all  that  it  containeth.  Only 
he  had  a  delight  in  thy  fathers  to  love  them,  and  their  posterity  after 
them,  and  he  chose  you  above  all  people,  as  it  is  this  day."4  Such 
is  evidently  the  reasoning  of  David  in  the  following  passage,  though 
the  chain  of  argument  is  not  quite  so  directly  displayed  : 
"  Quis  ascendet  in  montem  lehovae ; 
"  Et  quis  stabit  in  sede  eius  sanctitatis  ? 

'  Immunis  manibus,  et  purus  corde  ; 

'  Qui  in  vanis  numinibus  fiduciam  suam  non  reposuit, 

'  Nee  iuravit  fallendae  fidei  consilio. 

i  Is  reportabit  benedictionem  a  lehova, 

1  Et  iustitiam  a  Deo  eius  sospitatore. 

'  Talis  sit  gens,  quae  ilium  quaerit ; 

'  Quae  visit  faciem  Dei  lacobi." 

Thus  far  is  expressive,  on  the  one  hand,  of  the  infinite  goodness  and 
condescension  of  God  to  the  children  of  Israel ;  and  on  the  other 
hand,  of  their  indispensable  obligation  to  piety  and  virtue  ;  since  he 
had  deigned  to  make  their  nation  the  peculiar  seat  of  his  miraculous 

3  See  2  SAM.  vi.    1  CHRON.  xv.  4  DEUT.  x.  14—16. 


228  LYRIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXVII. 

providence,  and  to  honour  them  with  his  actual  presence.  We  may 
now  conceive  the  procession  to  have  arrived  at  the  gates  of  the  tab- 
ernacle. While  the  ark  is  brought  in,  the  Levites,  divided  into  two 
choirs,  sing  alternately  the  remainder  of  the  psalm.  Indeed,  it  is 
not  impossible  that  this  mode  of  singing  was  pursued  through  every 
part  of  the  ode ;  but  towards  the  conclusion  the  fact  will  not  admit 
of  a  doubt.  On  the  whole,  whether  we  regard  the  subject,  the  im- 
agery, or  style  of  this  composition,  it  will  be  found  to  possess  a  cer- 
tain simple  and  unaffected  (and  therefore  admirable)  sublimity  : 

"  Tollite  capita  vestra,  O  portae  ; 

"  Vosque  exaltemini,  aeternae  fores, 

"  Et  intrabit  rex  gloriae. 

"  Quis  est  rex  ille  gloriae  ? 

"  lehova  robustus  et  potens, 

"  lehova  potens  belli. 

"  Tollite  capita  vestra,  O  portae  ; 

"  Vosque  exaltemini,  aeternae  fores, 

"  Et  intrabit  rex  gloriae. 

"  Quis  vero  est  rex  ille  gloriae  ? 

"  lehova  armipotens,  ille  rex  est  gloriae. "(A) 

You  will  easily  perceive,  that  the  beauty  and  sublimity  observa- 
ble in  this  psalm  are  of  such  a  peculiar  kind,  as  to  be  perfectly 
adapted  to  the  subject  and  the  occasion,  and  to  that  particular  solem- 
nity for  which  it  was  composed.  You  will  perceive,  too,  that  unless 
we  have  some  respect  to  these  points,  the  principal  force  and  ele- 
gance will  be  lost ;  and  even  the  propriety  of  the  sentiments,  the 
splendour  of  the  diction,  the  beauty  and  order  of  the  arrangement, 
will  be  almost  totally  obscured.  If  such  be  the  state  of  the  case  in 
this  single  instance,  it  is  surely  not  unreasonable  to  conclude,  that  it 
is  not  the  only  one  which  stands  in  need  of  the  light  of  history  to  cast 
a  splendour  on  its  beauties.  It  is  surely  not  unreasonable  to  infer, 
that  much  of  the  harmony,  propriety,  and  elegance  of  the  sacred  po- 
etry, must  pass  unperceived  by  us,  who  can  only  form  distant  con- 
jectures of  the  general  design,  but  are  totally  ignorant  of  the  partic- 
ular application.  Thus  of  necessity  much  of  the  delicacy  of  senti- 
ment, much  of  the  felicity  of  allusion,  and  the  force  of  expression, 
must,  by  the  hand  of  time,  be  cast  into  shade  ;  or  rather  I  should 
say,  totally  suppressed  and  extinguished.  The  attentive  reader  will, 
indeed,  frequently  feel  a  want  of  information,  concerning  the  author, 
the  age,  and  the  occasion  of  a  poem ;  still  more  frequently  will  he 
find  occasion  to  lament  his  own  ignorance  with  respect  to  many 
facts  and  circumstances  closely  connected  with  the  principal  subject. 


LECT.  XXVII.  LYRIC  POETRY.  229 

and  on  which,  perhaps,  its  most  striking  ornaments  depend. (B) 
This  we  experience  in  some  degree  in  the  admirable  poem  of  Debo- 
rah ;  and  this  I  seem  to  experience  in  the  sixty -eighth  Psalm,  though 
it  appears  to  have  some  affinity  with  the  subject  of  that  which  we 
have  just  examined,  since  it  adopts,  in  the  place  of  an  exordium,  that 
well  known  form  of  expression  which  was  commonly  made  use  of  on 
the  removal  of  the  ark  :5 

"  Exsurgat  Deus ;  dissipentur  eius  inimici ; 

"  Et  fugiant  a  facie  eius  qui  eum  oderunt." 

But  almost  every  part  of  this  most  noble  poem  is  involved  in  an  im- 
penetrable darkness.  It  would  otherwise  have  afforded  a  singular 
example  of  the  true  sublime  ;  the  scattered  rays  of  which,  breaking 
forth  with  difficulty  through  the  thick  clouds  that  surround  it,  we 
yet  behold  with  a  mixture  of  admiration  and  pleasure. 

The  most  perfect  example  that  I  know  of  the  other  species  of  the 
sublime  ode,  which  I  pointed  out,  (that  I  mean  which  possesses  a 
sublimity  dependant  wholly  upon  the  greatness  of  the  conceptions, 
and  the  dignity  of  the  language,  without  any  peculiar  excellence  in 
the  form  and  arrangement,)  is  the  thanksgiving  ode  of  Moses,  com- 
posed after  passing  the  Red  Sea.6  Through  every  part  of  this 
poem  the  most  perfect  plainness  and  simplicity  is  maintained ;  there 
is  nothing  artificial,  nothing  laboured,  either  in  respect  to  method  or 
invention.  Every  part  of  it  breathes  the  spirit  of  nature  and  of  pas- 
sion :  joy,  admiration,  and  love,  united  with  piety  and  devotion, 
burst  forth  spontaneously  in  their  native  colours.  A  miracle  of  the 
most  interesting  nature  to  the  Israelites  is  displayed.  The  sea  di- 
vides, and  the  waters  are  raised  into  vast  heaps  on  either  side,  while 
they  pass  over ;  but  their  enemies  in  attempting  to  pursue,  are  over- 
whelmed by  the  reflux  of  the  waves.  These  circumstances  are  all 
expressed  in  language  suitable  to  the  emotions  which  they  produced, 
abrupt,  fervid,  concise,  animated,  with  a  frequent  repetition  of  the 
same  sentiments : 

"  Cantabo  lehovae,  quia  magnifice  sese  extulit; 

"  Equum  equitemque  in  mare  deiecit." 

This  constitutes  the  proem  of  the  ode,  and  is  also  repeated  occa- 
sionally by  the  female  part  of  the  band  in  the  manner  of  a  modern 
chorus,  being  briefly  expresssive  of  the  general  subject.  The  same 
idea,  however,  occurs  in  several  parts  of  the  poem,  with  considera- 
ble variation  in  the  language  and  figures  : 

5  Compare  NUM.  x.  35.  6  EXOD.  xv. 


230  LYRIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXVII. 

"  Pharaonis  currus  copiasque  in  mare  deiecit, 

"  Et  in  mari  rubro  demersi  sunt  electi  eius  duces. 

"  Operuerunt  eos  abyssi ; 

"  Descenderunt  in  profunda,  sicut  lapis." 
And  again : 

"  Dixerat  hostis,  persequar,  adsequar  ; 

"  Dividam  spolia,  exsaturabitur  anima  mea ; 

"  Stringam  gladium,  exscindet  eos  manus  mea  : 

"  Spiritu  tuo  flavisti ;  operuit  eos  mare  ; 

"  Demersi  sunt,  ut  plumbum  in  aquis  ingentibus.'' 

Nor  do  even  these  repetitions  satisfy  the  author  : 
"  Quis  tui  similis  inter  Deos,  lehova  ! 
"  Quis  tui  similis,  verendus  sanctitate  ! 
"  Terribilis  laudum,  faciens  mirabilia  ! 
"  Extendisti  dextram  ;  absorbet  eos  tellus." 

In  these  examples  is  displayed  all  the  genuine  force  of  nature  and 
passion,  which  the  efforts  of  art  will  emulate  in  vain.  Here  we  be- 
hold the  passions  struggling  for  vent,  labouring  with  a  copiousness 
of  thought  and  a  poverty  of  expression,  and  on  that  very  account  the 
more  expressly  displayed.  To  take  a  strict  account  of  the  sublimi- 
ty of  this  ode,  would  be  to  repeat  the  whole.  I  will  only  remark 
one  quality,  which  is  indeed  congenial  to  all  the  poetry  of  the  He- 
brews, but  in  this  poem  is  more  than  usually  predominant,  I  mean 
that  brevity  of  diction,  which  is  so  conducive  to  sublimity  of  style. 
Diffuse  and  exuberant  expression  generally  detracts  from  the  force 
of  the  sentiment ;  as  in  the  human  body,  excessive  corpulency  is 
generally  inconsistent  with  health  and  vigour.  The  Hebrews,  if  we 
contemplate  any  of  their  compositions  as  a  whole,  may  be  deemed 
full  and  copious ;  but  if  we  consider  only  the  constituent  parts  of 
any  production,  they  will  be  found  sparing  in  words,  concise  and 
energetic.  They  amplify  by  diversifying,  by  repeating,  and  some- 
times by  adding  to  the  subject ;  therefore  it  happens,  that  it  is  fre- 
quently, on  the  whole,  treated  rather  diffusely ;  but  still  every  par- 
ticular sentence  is  concise  and  nervous  in  itself.  Thus  it  happens 
in  general,  that  neither  copiousness  nor  vigour  is  wanting.  This 
brevity  of  style  is  in  some  measure  to  be  attributed  to  the  genius  of 
the  language,  and  in  some  measure  to  the  nature  of  the  Hebrew 
verse.  The  most  literal  versions  therefore  commonly  fail  in  this  re- 
spect, and  consequently  still  less  is  to  be  expected  from  any  poetical 
translations  or  imitations  whatever. 

Most  of  those  qualities  and  perfections,  which  have  been  the  sub- 
ject of  this  disquisition,  will  be  found  in  a  very  high  degree  in  the 


LECT.  XXVII.  LYRIC  POETRY.  231 

twenty-ninth  Psalm.  The  supreme  dominion  of  God,  and  the  awful- 
ness  of  his  power,  are  demonstrated  from  the  tremendous  noise,  and 
the  astonishing  force  of  the  thunder,  which  the  Hebrews,  by  a  bold 
but  very  apt  figure,  denominate  "  the  voice  of  the  Most  High."  It 
is  enough  to  say  of  it,  that  the  sublimity  of  the  matter  is  perfectly 
equalled  by  the  unaffected  energy  of  the  style. 

PSALM    XXIX. 

Regum  domino  cedite,  reges, 

Cedite  summi  decus  imperii. 

Date,  quos  meruit  nomen,  honores ; 

Adytis  Deum  adorate  sacratis,  t 

Sonat  horrendum  magna  Dei  vox  ! 

Aethere  ab  alto  Deus  intonuit ; 

Aequore  vasto  superintonuit 

Valida,  augusta,  decora,  Dei  vox  ! 

Ruit  ingenti  turbine  cedros, 

Ruit  umbrosi  cedros  Libani. 

Quatitur  Libanus,  subsjlit  Hermon ; 

Ut  vaga  lato  bucula  eampo, 

Levis  in  montibus  ut  saltat  oryx. 

Ruptis  rutilant  nubibus  ignes  ; 

Deserta  tremunt ;   tremit  alta  Cades : 

Sylva  gemit ;  querceta  laborant ; 

Densis  nudantur  nemora  umbris  ; 

Subitoque  iacent  perculsa  metu 

Hominum  corda,  agnoscuntque  Deum, 

Deus  undantem  regit  Oceanum ; 

Rex  aeterno  sedet  in  solio  : 

Populumque  Deus  sibi  dilectum 

Vi^ibus,  opibus,  pace  beabit.(c) 


L.ECTURE  XXTIII. 


THE    SUBLIME     STYLE     OP   THE    HEBREW    ODE. 

The  sublime  ode,  in  which  all  the  constituents  of  sublimity  formerly  specified  are  united— The 
prophetic  ode  of  Moses,  Deut.  xxxii.— The  triumphal  ode  of  Deborah ;  the  prayer  of  Habak- 
kuk.— The  fourteenth  chapter  of  Isaiah  in  Latin  verse. 

BEFORE  we  conclude  this  disquisition  concerning  the  lyric  poetry 
of  the  Hebrews,  it  will  be  proper  to  produce  a  few  specimens  of  that 
kind  of  ode,  which  derives  sublimity  from  several  united  causes,  from 
the  diction,  the  sentiments,  the  form,  and  conduct  of  the  poem ;  and 
which  accumulates,  or  in  a  manner  condenses  and  combines,  all  the 
beauties  and  elegancies  of  this  style  of  composition.  The  poems  to 
which  I  shall  refer  on  this  occasion,  are  too  well  known  to  require  a 
minute  explanation,  and  indeed  almost  too  noble  and  perspicuous  in 
themselves  to  admit  of  any  illustration  from  criticism  ;  it  will  there- 
fore be  sufficient  to  notice  them  in  general  terms,  or,  at  most,  briefly 
to  recommend  a  few  passages,  which  are  perhaps  so  eminently  beau- 
tiful as  to  deserve  particular  attention. 

The  first  instance  I  shall  mention  is  that  prophetic  ode  of 
Moses,1  which  contains  a  justification  on  the  part  of  God  against  the 
Israelites,  and  an  explanation  of  the  nature  and  design  of  the  divine 
judgements.  The  exordium  is  singularly  magnificent ;  the  plan  and 
conduct  of  the  poem  is  just,  natural,  and  well  accommodated  to  the 
subject,  for  it  is  almost  in  the  order  of  an  historical  narration.  It 
embraces  a  variety  of  the  sublimest  subjects  and  sentiments,  it  dis- 
plays the  truth  and  justice  of  God,  his  paternal  love,  and  his  unfail- 
ing tenderness  to  his  chosen  people  ;  and  on  the  other  hand,  their 
ungrateful  and  contumacious  spirit.  The  ardour  of  the  divine  in- 
dignation, and  the  heavy  denunciations  of  vengeance,  are  afterwards 
expressed  in  a  remarkable  personification,  which  is  scarcely  to  be 
paralleled  from  all  the  choicest  treasures  of  the  Muses^  The  fer- 
vour of  wrath  is  however  tempered  with  the  milder  beams  of  lenity 

1  DEUT.  xxxii. 


LECT.  XXVIII.  LYRIC  POETRY.  233 

and  mercy,  and  ends  at  last  in  promises  and  consolation.  When  I 
formerly  treated  of  elevation  of  sentiment,  of  the  impulse  of  the  pas- 
sions, of  the  force  of  imagery  and  diction,  I  could  scarcely  have 
avoided  touching  upon  this  poem,  and  drawing  some  of  my  exam- 
ples from  it.2  Not  to  repeat  these,  or  accumulate  unnecessary  mat- 
ter, I  will  only  add  one  remark,  namely,  that  the  subject  and  style 
of  this  poem  bear  so  exact  a  resemblance  to  the  prophetic  as  well  as 
the  lyric  compositions  of  the  Hebrews,  that  it  unites  all  the  force, 
energy,  and  boldness  of  the  latter,  with  the  exquisite  variety  and 
grandeur  of  imagery  so  peculiar  to  the  former.3 

Another  specimen  of  the  perfectly  sublime  ode  will  be  found  in 
the  triumphal  ode  of  Deborah.4  This  poem  consists  of  three  parts  : 
first,  the  exordium  ;  next,  a  recital  of  the  circumstances  which  pre- 
ceded, and  of  those  which  accompanied  the  victory  ;  lastly,  a  fuller 
description  of  the  concluding  event,  the  death  of  Sisera,  and  the  dis- 
appointed hopes  of  his  mother,  which  is  embellished  with  all  the 
-choicest  flowers  of  poetry.  Of  this  latter  part,  I  endeavoured  to  ex- 
plain at  large  the  principal  beauties  in  a  former  lecture.  About  the 
middle  of  the  poem,  it  must  be  confessed,  some  obscurities  occur, 
and  those  not  of  a  trivial  nature,  which  impair  the  beauty  of  the 
composition  ;  and  what  is  worse,  I  fear  they  will  scarcely  admit  of 
elucidation,  unless  we  were  possessed  of  some  further  historical 
lights.  The  exordium  deserves  a  particular  examination,  as  well  for 
its  native  magnificence  and  sublimity,  as  because  it  will  serve  more 
completely  to  illustrate  my  remarks  concerning  the  digressions  of  the 
Hebrew  ode.  I  observed,  that  the  principal  passages  in  the  sacred 
history,  which  in  general  constitute  the  materials  of  these  digres- 
sions, are  so  connected  with  every  subject  of  sacred  poetry,  that 
even  in  the  most  eccentric  excursions  of  the  imagination,  there  is 
little  danger  of  wandering  from  the  main  scope  and  design.  The 
subject  of  this  ode  is  the  triumph  of  the  Israelites  over  their  enemies 
through  the  divine  assistance,  and  the  establishment  of  their  liberty. 
At  the  very  opening  of  the  poem  this  is  proposed  as  the  ground-work 
of  it  :  and  after  inviting  the  kings  and  princes  of  the  neighbouring 
nations  to  attend  to  this  miracle  of  the  divine  goodness,  the  author 
proceeds  to  celebrate  the  praise  of  God,  not  commencing  with  the 
benefit  so  recently  received,  but  with  the  prodigies  formerly  exhibit- 
ed in  Egypt  : 


2  See  LECT.  xv.  3  Jup.  T,  4  See  Lect.  xiii. 

30 


234  LYRIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXVIII. 

"  O  lehova,  cum  e  Seire  exires, 

"  Cum  ex  agro  Idumaeo  procederes  ; 

"  Terra  commota  eet,  stillaverunt  coeli, 

"  Stillaverunt  aquis  nubes ; 

"  Fluxerunt  montes  a  facie  lehovae, 

"  Ipse  Sina  a  facie  lehovae  Dei  Israelis." 

The  sudden  introduction  of  such  important  incidents,  breathes  the 
free  and  fervid  spirit  of  the  lyric  Muse.  There  is  however  no  defect 
in  the  connexion,  nor  does  any  degree  of  obscurity  attend  the  com- 
parison which  is  implied  between  that  stupendous  deliverance  and 
the  benefit  so  lately  received. (A) 

On  the  same  principle  the  prayer  of  Habakkuk  is  constructed  ;5 
and  is  a  remarkable  instance  of  that  sublimity  peculiar  to  the  ode, 
and  which  is  often  the  result  of  a  bold  but  natural  digression.  The 
prophet  foreseeing  the  judgement  of  God,  and  the  impending  calam- 
ities, which  were  to  be  inflicted  upon  his  nation  by  the  hands  of  the 
Chaldeans,  as  well  as  the  punishments,  which  the  latter  were  them- 
selves to  undergo ;  partly  struck  with  terror,  partly  cheered  with 
hope,  he  beseeches  Almighty  God  to  hasten  the  redemption  of  his 
people  : 

"  lehova,  audivi  nuntium  tuum,  extimui ; 

"  Opus  tuum,  O  lehova,  in  medio  annorum  instaura; 

"  In  medio  annorum  notum  facias  : 

"  In  iracundia  misericordiae  reminiscere." 

In  this  passage,  the  resemblance  between  the  Babylonish  and  Egyp- 
tian captivities  naturally  presents  itself  to  the  mind,  as  well  as  the 
possibility  of  a  similar  deliverance  through  the  power  and  assistance 
of  God.  With  how  much  propriety,  therefore,  might  the  prophet 
have  continued  his  supplications  to  that  all-powerful  and  all-merciful 
God  ;  that,  as  he  had  formerly  wrought  so  many  miracles  in  favour 
of  his  people,  he  would  afford  them  relief  and  consolation  on  the 
present  occasion  ;  and  how  efficacious  a  method  would  it  have  been, 
to  confirm  the  fortitude  of  every  pious  person,  to  remind  them,  that 
he  who  had  formerly  manifested  his  infinite  power  in  delivering  the 
Israelites  from  their  great  afflictions,  might,  in  proper  time,  employ 
the  same  means  to  rescue  them  from  their  present  state  of  suffering  ? 
He  however  totally  disregards  the  formality  of  this  method,  probably 
because  he  supposed  all  the  above  ideas  would  spontaneously  occur 
to  the  reader ;  nor  does  he  labour  for  access  by  slow  and  regular  ap- 

5  HABAK.  iii. 


LECT.  XXVIII.  LYRIC  POETRY.  235 

proaches  to  the  sacred  depository  of  the  most  splendid  materials,  but 
bursts  into  it  at  once,  and  by  a  sort  of  unexpected  impulse  : 

"  Deus  e  Themane  prodiit, 

"  Et  sanctus  e  monte  Paranaeo  : 

"  Operuit  coelos  gloria  eius, 

"  Et  splendore  eius  oppleta  est  tellus." 

The  prophet,  indeed,  illustrates  this  subject  throughout  with  equal 
magnificence  ;  selecting  from  such  an  assemblage  of  miraculous  in- 
cidents, the  most  noble  and  important,  displaying  them  in  the  most 
splendid  colours,  and  embellishing  them  with  the  sublimest  imagery, 
figures,  and  diction,  the  dignity  of  which  is  so  heightened  and  re- 
commended by  the  superior  elegance  of  the  conclusion,  that  were  it 
not  for  a  few  shades,  which  the  hand  of  time  has  apparently  cast 
over  it  in  two  or  three  passages,  no  composition  of  the  kind  would, 
I  believe,  appear  more  elegant  or  more  perfect  than  this  poem.(B) 

I  will  add  one  remarkable  example  more  of  the  perfectly  sublime 
ode,  which  indeed  it  would  be  utterly  unpardonable  to  overlook  ;  I 
mean,  the  triumphal  song  of  the  Israelites  on  the  destruction  of  Bab- 
ylon. It  is  almost  unnecessary  to  add,  that  it  is  in  no  respect  un- 
worthy of  Isaiah,  whom  I  cannot  help  esteeming  the  first  of  poets, 
as  well  for  elegance  as  sublimity.  Having  formerly  taken  up  a  con- 
siderable portion  of  your  time  and  attention  in  a  minute  investigation 
of  its  beauties,  it  is  now  presented  in  the  modern  form  of  a  lyric  com- 
position. 


ISRAELITARVM 

IN 

OCCASVM  REGIS  REGNIQVE  BABYLONICI 
ODE  PROPHETICA. 

ISAIAE    CAP.   XIV.  4  —  27. 

Ergo  insolentis  corruit  imperi 

Insana  moles  ?  occidit  urbium 

Regina  victrix,  nee  subacto 

Effera  iam  dominatur  orbi  ? 
Fastus  tyranni  contudit  impios 
Jehova  vindex,  sceptraque  ferrea: 
Qui  verbere  baud  unquam  remisso 

Fregit  atrox  populos  gementes. 
Nunc  ipse  diras  iure  subit  vices. 
Pacata  tellus  undique  gaudio 
Exultat  efiraeni,  et  solutos 
Ingeminat  sine  more  cantus. 


236  LYRIC   POETRY.  LECT.  XXVIII. 

Secura  summis  stat  Libani  in  iugis 
Ridetque  Cedrus :  Sicne  iaces,  ferox  ! 
lam  nemo  saevam,  te  iacente, 

Per  nemorum  dabit  alta  stragera. 
Te  propter  imis  concita  sedibus 
Nigrantis  orci  magna  fremit  domus ; 
En  !  luce  defunctos  tyrannos, 
Sceptrigeras  soliis  ab  altis. 
Excivit  umbras,  hospitis  in  novi 
Occursum  euntes.     Tene  etiam,  occupant, 
Te  viribus,  te  luce  cassum 

Conspicimus,  similemque  nostri, 
Orbumque  fastu  ?  Non  comitum  frequens 
Deducit  ordo ;  non  tuba,  non  lyrae 
Concentus :  at  squalentis  orci 

Nox  premit,  et  taciturnus  horror : 
At  turba  circum  plurima  vermium 
Fervet,  pererrans  membra  licentius, 
Foedumque  tabo  diffluentes 

Laeta  cohors  populatur  artus. 
Vt  decidisti  coelitus,  agminis, 
Hoe,  clarum  siderei  decus  ! 
Vt  decidisti,  qui  domabas 

Victor  ovans  populos  trementes  ! 
Nuper  minatus  :  scandam  ego  nubila ; 
jStabo  Sionis  culmine  in  arduo 
Sublimis,  et  qua  spectat  arcton 

Arce  sacra  solium  locabo  : 
Subiecta  calcabo  astra,  premens  polum, 
Terramque  torquens  numine,  par  Deo. 
At  dura  te  lethi  profundo 

Vis  cohibet  barathro  iacentem. 
Ac  forte  quisquam  conspicit  avio 
Deforme  corpus  littore  :  stat  diu 
Incertus,  admo toque  pronus 
Lumine,  te  propius  tuetur. 
Mox  insit ;  hie  est,  quern  fuga,  quern  pavor 
Praecessit?  hie,  quern  terricolis  gravem 
Strages  secuta  est,  vastitasque  :  hie 

Attoniti  spoliator  orbis  ? 
Indigna  regum  colla  gravi  iugo  et 
Duris  catenis  subiicere  insolens, 
Lateque  diffusa  ruina 

Per  laceras  equitare  gentes  ? 
Reges,  tyrannique,  et  validum  ducum 
Manes  superbi,  non  sine  gloria 


LECT.  XXVIII.  LYRIC  POETRY.  237 

Conduntur  omnes,  et  reposti 

Sedibus  in  patriis  quiescunt : 
At  te,  supremis  mortis  honoribus, 
Vili  carentem  munere  pulveris, 
Inter  cadentum  turpe  vulgus, 

Sordidum  et  indecorem  sepulchris 
Egere  avitis  :  te,  quia  patriae 
Tuisque  iniquum  ;  te,  quia  gentibus 
Fatale  portentum.     Malorum 

Nullus  honos  cineres  sequetur  ; 
Poena  immerentes  ob  patrium  scelus 
Natos  manebit.     Funditus  impiam 
Delete  gentem,  ne  superbos 

Proroget  ulterius  triumphos : 
Namque  ipse  consurgam,  omnipotens  ait, 
Et  nomen  extinguam  Babylonium, 
Stirpenique,natosque,  ultimasque 

Relliquias  generis  nefandi ; 
Vrbemque  diris  alitibus  dabo 
Ferisque  habendam  :  vasta  teget  palug 
Demersam,  et  aeterno  profunda 

Obruet  exitio  vorago. 
Dixit  sacramentum  inviolabile 
lehova  :  sic  stat  consilium ;  hie  tenor 
Fatique  non  mutandus  ordo, 
Terminus  hie  stabilis  manebit : 

Frangam  superbas  montibus  in  meis 
Vires  tyrannorum ;  eripiam  truci 
lugo  laborantes,  meorumque 
Ex  humeris  onus  amovebo. 
lehova  dixit :  quis  dabit  irritum  ? 
Gentes  in  omnes  hanc  pater  en  !  manum 
Extendit :  extentam  lehovae 

Quis  poterit  cohibere  dextram  ?(c) 


LECTURE  XXIX. 


OP     THE     IDYLLIUM     OP     THE     HEBREWS. 

Besides  those  poems  which  may  be  strictly  termed  Odes,  the  general  appellation,  which  in  the 
Hebrew  is  equivalent  to  Canticle  or  Song,  includes  another  species,  called  by  the  Greeks  the 
Idyllium.— The  reason  of  this  name,  and  the  definition  of  the  poem  to  which  it  is  appropriat- 
ed.—The  historical  psalms  in  general  belong  properly  to  this  class.— The  intercalary  stanza, 
and  the  nature  of  it.— The  elegant  plan  and  arrangement  of  the  hundred  and  seventh  Psalm 
explained:  also  the  ninth  chapter  of  Isaiah,  ver.  8,  to  chap.  x.  ver  4.— This  passage  a  perfect 
specimen  of  the  Idyllium  :  other  examples  of  the  Idyllium  no  less  perfect  as  to  style  and 
form.— The  hymn  of  Cleanthes  the  Stoic  commended.— The  hundred  and  thirty-ninth  Psalm 
in  Latin  verse. 

AMONG  those  poems  which  by  the  Hebrews  were  adapted  to  mu- 
sic, and  distinguished  by  the  general  appellation  tP'VttJ,  there  are 
some  which  differ  in  their  nature  from  lyric  poetry,  strictly  so  call- 
ed. It  will  therefore  be  more  regular  to  class  them  with  those  com- 
positions anciently  termed  Idylliums,  the  name  and  nature  of  which 
I  shall  endeavour  to  explain. 

Whether  we  are  to  attribute  the  invention  of  the  name  to  the 
poets  themselves,  or  to  the  grammarians  who  revised  their  works,  is 
difficult  to  say ;  but  we  find  some  of  the  Greek  poems  distinguished 
by  the  title  E'i8r\,  which  denotes  a  poem  without  any  certain  limita- 
tion as  to  form  or  subject.  Even  the  odes  of  Pindar  retain  that  ap- 
pellation. But  if  there  were  any  upon  lighter  subjects,  or  in  a  more 
humble  strain,  indeed  in  any  respect  of  an  inferior  kind,  and  such 
as  could  not  be  classed  under  any  of  the  common  divisions,  they 
were  entitled  Eidvllia..  Thus  the  small  poems  of  Theocritus, 
which  consist  chiefly  of  Bucolics,  intermingled  with  others  of  differ- 
ent kinds,  are  called  Idylliums.  In  the  same  manner  the  Latins 
preferred  the  name  of  Eclogues,  or  poems  selected  from  a  number 
of  others  :  and  for  a  contrary  and  more  modest  reason,  that  of  SylvcB 
(or  Woods)  was  given  to  such  verses  as  were  hastily  composed,  and 
promiscuously  thrown  together,  such  as  might  afford  matter  for  a 
more  accurate  revision  or  for  a  similar  selection.  But  although  the 
term  Idyllium  be  a  vague  and  general  term,  which  denotes  nothing 
certain  relating  to  the  nature  of  the  poem,  it  still  appears  by  use  and 


LECT.  XXIX.  THE  IDYLLIUM.  239 

custom  to  have  obtained  a  certain  and  appropriated  destination  ;  and 
perhaps  it  may  not  be  improperly  defined,  a  poem  of  moderate 
length  ;  of  a  uniform,  middle  style,  chiefly  distinguished  for  elegance 
and  sweetness ;  regular  and  clear  as  to  plot,  conduct,  and  arrange- 
ment. There  are  many  perfect  examples  of  this  kind  of  poem  extant 
in  the  writings  of  the  Hebrews  ;  some  of  which,  I  presume,  it  will 
not  be  unpleasing  singly  to  point  out  and  explain. 

The  first  of  these  poems  which  attract  our  notice,  are  the  histori- 
cal Psalms,  in  celebration  of  the  power  and  the  other  attributes  of 
the  Deity,  as  instanced  in  the  miracles  which  he  performed  in  favour 
of  his  people.  One  of  the  principal  of  these,  bearing  the  name  of 
Asaph,1  pursues  the  history  of  the  Israelites  from  the  time  of  their 
departure  from  Egypt  to  the  reign  of  David,  particularizing  and  il- 
lustrating all  the  leading  events.  The  style  is  simple  and  uniform, 
but  the  structure  is  poetical,  and  the  sentiments  occasionally  splen- 
did. The  historical,  or  rather  chronological  order,  cannot  be  said 
to  be  exactly  preserved  throughout ;  for  the  minute  detail  of  so  pro- 
tracted a  series  of  events  could  scarcely  fail  to  tire  in  a  work  of  im- 
agination. The  Egyptian  miracles  are  introduced  in  a  very  happy 
and  elegant  digression,  and  may  be  considered  as  forming  a  kind  of 
episode.  The  same  subject  affords  materials  for  two  other  Psalms, 
the  hundred  and  fifth,  and  the  hundred  and  sixth  :  the  one  inclu- 
ding the  history  of  Israel,  from  the  call  of  Abraham  to  the  Exodus  ; 
the  other,  from  that  period  to  the  later  ages  of  the  commonwealth  : 
both  of  them  bear  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  seventy-eighth,  as 
well  in  the  subject  as  in  the  style  (except  perhaps  that  the  diction  is 
rather  of  a  more  simple  cast ;)  the  mixture  of  ease  and  grace,  dis- 
played in  the  exordium,  is  the  same  in  all. 

These  Psalms,  both  in  plot  and  conduct,  have  a  surprising  anal- 
ogy to  the  hymns  of  the  Greeks.  Indeed  the  Greek  translators 
might  very  properly  have  given  the  title  of  '  TMNOI  to  the  book  of 
Psalms,  as  that  word  agrees  much  more  exactly  with  the  Hebrew 
title  to"Wn,  than  that  which  they  have  adopted.  This  species  of 
poetry  was  very  early  in  use  among  the  Greeks,  and  was  almost  en- 
tirely appropriated  to  the  celebration  of  their  religious  rites.  The 
subjects  in  general  were  the  origin  of  the  gods,  the  places  of  their 
birth,  their  achievements,  and  the  other  circumstances  of  their  histo- 
ry. Such  are  all  the  poems  of  this  kind  now  extant  in  the  Greek  ; 

1  Ps.  Ixxviii. 


240  THE  IDYLLIUM.  LfiCT.  XXIX. 

such  are  the  elegant  hymns  of  Calimachus,  as  well  as  those  which 
are  attributed  to  Homer.  The  poem  of  Theocritus,  entitled  the 
jdtoaxovpot,  or  the  praise  of  Castor  and  Pollux,  is  also  a  genuine 
hymn,  and  very  elegant  in  its  kind  :  nor  is  it  improperly  classed 
among  the  Idylliums,  which  may  be  said  to  include  all  of  this  spe- 
cies. But  the  true  form  and  character  of  the  hymn  is  excellently 
expressed  by  the  two  choirs  of  Salii  (or  priests  of  war)  in  Virgil : 

"  qui  carmine  laudes 
"  Herculeas  etfacta  ferunt."2 

Those  ancient  hymns,  which  are  falsely  attributed  to  Orpheus,  are 
more  properly  initiatory  songs  ;  for  they  contain  "  little  more  than 
invocations  of  the  gods,  which  were  made  use  of  by  those  who  were 
initiated  in  the  sacred  mysteries  of  any  of  the  gods."3  Ovid,  who  was 
both  an  elegant  and  a  learned  poet,  united  the  excellencies  of  both 
these  species  of  hymns  :  for  the  exordium  of  the  hymn  to  Bacchus 
contains  the  invocations  of  that  god,  or,  in  other  words,  announces 
solemnly  his  name  and  titles ;  the  remainder  celebrates  his  perfec- 
tions and  achievements.4 

There  is  yet  another  Psalm,  which  may  be  enumerated  among 
those  of  the  historical  kind,  namely,  the  hundred  and  thirty-sixth. 
It  celebrates  the  praises  of  the  Almighty,  and  proclaims  his  infinite 
power  and  goodness  ;  beginning  with  the  work  of  creation,  and  pro- 
ceeding to  the  miracles  of  the  Exodus,  the  principal  of  which  are  re- 
lated almost  in  the  historical  order.  The  exordium  commences  with 
this  well  known  distich  : 

"  Laudate  lehovam,  quia  bonus, 
"  Quia  aeterna  est  eius  benignitas  :" 

which,  according  to  Ezra,5  was  commonly  sung  by  alternate  choirs. 
There  is,  however,  one  circumstance  remarkable  attending  it,  which 
is,  that  the  latter  line  of  the  distich,  being  added  by  the  second 
choir,  and  also  subjoined  to  every  verse  (which  is  a  singular  case) 
forms  a  perpetual  epode.  Hence  the  whole  nature  and  form  of  the 
intercalary  verse,  (or  burthen  of  the  song)  may  be  collected :  it  ex- 
presses in  a  clear,  concise,  and  simple  manner,  some  particular  sen- 
timent, which  seems  to  include  virtually  the  general  subject  or  de- 
sign of  the  poem ;  and  it  is  thrown  in  at  proper  intervals,  according 
to  the  nature  and  arrangement  of  it,  for  the  sake  of  impressing  the 

2  Virg.  2En.  viii.  285.  3  Jos.  SCALIGER,  Annot.  in  Hymn.  Orph- 

4  Metamorph.  iv.  11.  5  EZRA  iii.  10, 11. 


LECT.  XXIX.  THE  IDYLLIUM. 


subject  more  firmly  upon  the  mind.  That  the  intercalary  verse  is 
perfectly  congenial  to  the  Idyllium,  is  evident  from  the  authority  of 
Theocritus,  Bion,  Moschus,  and  even  of  Virgil.  I  shall  add  one  or 
two  examples  from  the  sacred  poetry,  which  will  not  lose  in  a  com- 
parison with  the  most  perfect  specimens  in  this  department  of  poet- 
ry, which  those  excellent  writers  have  bequeathed  to  posterity  :  and 
in  order  to  illustrate  as  well  the  elegance  of  the  poem  in  general,  as 
the  peculiar  force  and  beauty  of  the  intercalary  verse,  the  order  and 
conduct  of  the  subject  must  be  particularly  explained. 

The  hundred  and  seventh  Psalm  may  undoubtedly  be  enumerat- 
ed among  the  most  elegant  monuments  of  antiquity  ;  and  it  is  chief- 
ly indebted  for  its  elegance  to  the  general  plan  and  conduct  of  the 
poem.  It  celebrates  the  goodness  and  mercy  of  God  towards  man- 
kind, as  demonstrated  in  the  immediate  assistance  and  comfort  which 
he  affords,  in  the  greatest  calamities,  to  those  who  devoutly  implore 
his  aid.  In  the  first  place,  to  those  who  wander  in  the  desert,  and 
who  encounter  the  horrors  of  famine  ;  next,  to  those  who  are  in  bond- 
age ;  to  those  who  are  afflicted  with  disease  ;  and  finally,  to  those 
who  are  tossed  about  upon  the  ocean.  The  prolixity  of  the  argu- 
ment is  occasionally  relieved  by  narration  ;  and  examples  are  super- 
added  of  the  divine  severity  in  punishing  the  wicked,  as  well  as  of 
his  benignity  to  the  devout  and  virtuous  ;  and  both  the  narrative  and 
preceptive  parts  are  recommended  to  the  earnest  contemplation  of 
considerate  minds.  Thus  the  whole  poem  actually  divides  into  five 
parts  nearly  equal  ;  the  four  first  of  which  conclude  with  an  interca- 
lary verse,  expressive  of  the  subject  or  design  of  the  hymn  : 
"  Laudent  lehovam  ob  eius  misericordiam, 
"  Et  miracula  in  hominum  gratiam  edita." 

This  distich  also  is  occasionally  diversified,  and  another  sometimes 
.annexed  illustrative  of  the  sentiment  : 

"  Nam  satiavit  animara  fatiscentem, 

"  Anirnamque  esurientem  implevit  bonis." 

"  Nam  fregit  portas  aheneas, 
"  Et  vectes  ferreos  discidit  :" 

The  sentiment  of  the  epode  itself  is  sometimes  repeated,  only  varied 
by  different  imagery  : 

"  Laudent  lehovam  ob  eius  misericordiam, 
"  Et  miracula  in  hominum  gratiam  edita  : 
"  Et  offerant  sacrificia  laudis, 
"  Et  facta  eius  laeto  cantu  enarrent  :" 
31 


242  THE  IDYLLIUM.  LECT.  XXIX. 


"  Et  exaltent  eum  in  coetu  populi, 

"  Et  in  concilio  seniorum  eum  celebrent." 

In  all  these  passages,  the  transition  from  the  contemplation  of  their 
calamities,  to  that  of  their  deliverance,  which  is  made  by  the  perpet- 
ual repetition  of  the  same  distich,  is  truly  elegant : 

"  Et  invocarunt  lehovam  in  rebus  afflictis; 

"  Ex  eorum  angustiis  eos  liberat." 

This  however  does  not  appear  in  the  least  to  partake  of  the  nature 
of  the  intercalary  verse.  The  latter  part  of  the  Psalm,  which  com- 
prehends a  vast  variety  of  matter,  concludes  with  two  distichs,  ex- 
pressive of  a  sentiment,  grave,  solemn,  and  practical,  and  in  no  re- 
spect unworthy  the  rest  of  the  poem. 

There  are  many  other  examples  to  be  found  in  the  Psalms ;  but 
it  must  be  confessed,  few  of  them  are  equal,  and  none  of  them  supe- 
rior to  this.  I  shall  select  another  specimen  from  Isaiah  ;  and  the 
more  willingly,  because,  in  it,  as  in  other  passages  of  the  same  au- 
thor, the  common  division  into  chapters  has  greatly  obscured  that 
most  elegant  writer,  by  absurdly  breaking  the  unity  of  a  very  inter- 
esting poem,  and  connecting  each  part  with  matter  which  is  totally 
foreign  to  the  subject.  If  we  unite  the  conclusion  of  the  ninth  chap- 
ter with  the  beginning  of  the  tenth,  we  shall  find  a  complete  and 
connected  prophecy  against  the  kingdom  of  Israel  or  Samaria.6  It 
is  replete  with  terror  and  solemnity,  and  possesses  a  degree  of  force 
and  sublimity  to  which  the  Idyllium  seldom  rises ;  though  it  pre- 
serves the  form  of  the  Idyllium  so  perfect  and  express,  that  it  cannot 
with  propriety  be  referred  to  any  other  class.  The  poem  consists  of 
four  parts,  each  of  which  contains  a  denunciation  of  vengeance 
against  the  crimes  of  this  rebellious  people,  vehemently  accusing 
them  of  some  atrocious  offence,  and  distinctly  marking  out  the  par- 
ticular punishment.  In  the  first,  the  pride  and  ostentation  of  the  Is- 
raelites is  reproved ;  in  the  second,  the  obduracy  of  their  spirit,  and 
the  general  depravation  of  their  morals ;  in  the  third,  their  auda- 
cious impiety,  which  rages  like  a  flame,  destroying  and  laying  waste 
the  nation  ;  and  lastly,  their  iniquity  is  set  forth  as  demonstrated  in 
their  partial  administration  of  justice,  and  their  oppression  of  the 
poor.  To  each  of  these  a  specific  punishment  is  annexed ;  and  a 
clause,  declaratory  of  a  further  reserve  of  the  divine  vengeance,  is 

6  ISA.  ix.  8. — x.  4.  In  one  MS.  a  vacant  space  is  left  after  ISA.  x.  4,  but, 
no  space  of  the  same  kind  at  the  end  of  chap.  ix.  In  another  MS.  after  chap, 
x..  4,  a  space  of  one  line  is  interposed.  KENNICOTT. 


LECT.  XXIX.  THE  IDYLLIUM.  243 

added,  which  forms  the  epode,  and  is  admirably  calculated  to  exag- 
gerate the  horror  of  the  prediction  : 

"  His  omnibus  nondum  conversa  est  eius  indignatio, 

"  Sed  manus  eius  adhuc  est  extenta." 

The  examples  which  I  have  hitherto  produced  will,  at  first  view, 
explain  their  own  nature  and  kind ;  there  are,  however,  others,  and 
probably  not  a  few,  (in  the  book  of  Psalms  particularly)  which  may 
equally  be  accounted  of  the  Idyllium  species.  I  have  principally  in 
contemplation  those,  in  which  some  particular  subject  is  treated  in 
a  more  copious  and  regular  manner,  than  is  usual  in  compositions 
strictly  lyric.  Such  is  the  hundred  and  fourth  Psalm,  which  demon- 
strates the  glory  of  the  infinite  Creator,  from  the  wisdom,  beauty, 
and  variety  of  his  works.  The  poet  embellishes  this  noble  subject 
with  the  clearest  and  most  splendid  colouring  of  language  ;  and  with 
imagery  the  most  magnificent,  lively,  diversified,  and  pleasing,  at  the 
same  time  select,  and  happily  adapted  to  the  subject.  There  is 
nothing  of  the  kind  extant,  indeed  nothing  can  be  conceived,  more 
perfect  than  this  hymn,  whether  it  be  considered  with  respect  to  its 
intrinsic  beauties,  or  as  a  model  of  that  species  of  composition.  Mi- 
raculous exertions  of  the  divine  power  have  something  in  them  which 
at  first  strikes  the  inattentive  mind  with  a  strong  sentiment  of  sub- 
limity and  awe  :  but  the  true  subject  of  praise,  the  most  worthy  of 
God,  and  the  best  adapted  to  impress  upon  the  heart  of  man  a  fer- 
vent and  permanent  sense  of  piety,  is  drawn  from  the  contemplation 
of  his  power  in  the  creation  of  this  infinite  All,  his  wisdom  in  ar- 
ranging and  adorning  it,  his  providence  in  sustaining,  and  his  mer- 
cy in  the  regulation  of  its  minutest  parts,  and  in  ordering  and  direct- 
ing the  affairs  of  men.  The  Greek  hymns  consisted  chiefly  of  fa- 
bles, and  these  fables  regarded  persons  and  events,  which  were 
neither  laudable  in  themselves,  nor  greatly  to  be  admired  ;  indeed  I 
do  not  recollect  any  that  are  extant  of  this  sublime  nature,  except 
that  of  the  famous  Stoic  Cleanthes,  which  is  inscribed  to  Jove,  that 
is  to  God  the  Creator,  or,  as  he  expresses  himself,  "  to  the  Eternal 
Mind,  the  Creator  and  Governor  of  Nature."7  It  is  doubtless  a  most 
noble  monument  of  ancient  wisdom,  and  replete  with  truths  not  less 
solid  than  magnificent.  For  the  sentiments  of  the  philosopher  con- 
cerning the  divine  power,  concerning  the  harmony  of  nature,  and 
the  supreme  laws,  concerning  the  folly  and  unhappiness  of  wicked 
men,  who  are  unceasingly  subject  to  the  pain  and  perturbation  of  a 
7  See  CUDWORTH,  Intellect.  System,  page  432. 


244  THE  IDYLLIUM.  L.ECT.  XXIX. 


troubled  spirit ;  and  above  all,  the  ardent  supplication  for  the  divine 
assistance,  in  order  to  enable  him  to  celebrate  the  praises  of  the  om- 
nipotent Deity  in  a  suitable  manner,  and  in  a  perpetual  strain  of 
praise  and  adoration ;  all  of  these  breathe  so  true  and  unaffected  a 
spirit  of  piety,  that  they  seem  in  some  measure  to  approach  the  ex- 
cellence of  the  sacred  poetry. 

The  hymn  of  David,  which  I  have  just  mentioned,  deservedly 
occupies  the  first  place  in  this  class  of  poems ;  that  which  comes 
nearest  to  it,  as  well  in  the  conduct  of  the  poem  as  in  the  beauty  of 
the  style,  is  another  of  the  same  author.  It  celebrates  the  omni- 
science of  the  Deity,  and  the  incomparable  art  and  design  displayed 
in  the  formation  of  the  human  body  ;  if  it  be  excelled  (as  perhaps  it 
is)  by  the  former  in  the  plan,  disposition,  and  arrangement  of  the 
matter,  it  is  however  not  in  the  least  inferior  in  the  dignity  and  ele- 
gance of  the  figures  and  imagery  : 

PSALM    CXXXIX. 

Tu  mihi  semper  ades,  tu  me  omni  ex  parte  patentern 
Intueris,  Deus  !  et  manifesto  in  lumine  cernis. 
Tu  me,  quicquid  ago,  quoquo  vestigia  flecto, 
Usque  premis  ;  seu  luce  labor,  seu  alterna  silenti 
Nocte  quies  redeat :  ut  pectus  et  abdita  mentis 
Perspicis  introrsum  insinuans  ;  caecoque  recessu 
Exagitas  latitantem,  arctaque  indagine  cingis. 
Tu  dubiis  vixdum  eluctantia  dicta  labellis 
Antevenis,  primosque  animi  praeverteris  orsus. 
Quippe  manu  prensumque  tenes  !  nudumque,  reclusumque, 
Ante,  retro,  exploras,  mihi  me  praesentior  ipso. 

O  Deus  !    infinitum  atque  inscrutabile  numen  ! 
Cuncta  sciens  mens,  ipsa  incognita  !  qua  fugiam  te, 
Obtutusque  tuos  et  conscia  lumina  fallam  ? 
Ascendam  coelos  ?  ibi  tu  :  subeam  ima  barathri 
Tartara  ?  ades  :   simul  haec  magno  loca  numine  comples. 
Auroraene  procul  rutilas  ferar  ales  in  oras  ? 
Occiduine  petam  fines  novus  incola  ponti  ? 
Hie  etiam  tua  me  ducet  manus  ;  hie  tua  cursum 
Dextera  praeveniet  cohibens,  reprimetque  fugacem. 
Ergo  petam  tenebras,  et  condar  nocte  sub  atra  ? 
Demens,  qui  tenues  umbras,  et  inania  vela, 
Sancte  !   tuis  obvertam  oculis,  densissima  cui  nox 
Pellucet,  tenebraeque  ipsae  sunt  luminis  instar. 

Te  Dominum  auctoremque  colo  ;  tu  hos  conditor  artue 
Formasti,  et  gravida  texisti  matris  in  alvo. 
Obstupeo,  et  memet  laeta  formidine  lustro, 


LECT.  XXIX.  THE  IDYLLIUM.  245 


Divini  monumentum  operis  !  tu  corporis  omnem 
Compagem,  mersam  tenebris  et  carceris  caeco, 
Perspix'ti ;  tua  solerti  per  singula  ductu 
Dextera  iit,  tua  pinxit  acus  mirabile  textum. 
Ipse  nidi  invigilans  massae,  primisque  elementis 
Conscius  instabas  :  iussas  orientia  formas 
Membra  minutatim  induerunt,  quocunque  vocares 
Prompta  sequi  :  sua  cuique  tuis  inscripta  tabellis 
Effigies  erat,  atque  operis  data  norma  futuri. 

Ut  mi  animum  sancto  permista  horrore  voluptas 
Percipit!  ut  vano  iuvat  indulgere  labori, 
Dum  tua  facta,  Deus,  recolo ;   tua  mente  revolvo 
Consilia,  et  numero  artificie  miracula  dextrae  ! 
Promptius  expediam,  quot  volvant  aequora  fluctus ; 
Littore  vexato  quam  inultae  agitentur  arenae. 
Usque  eadem  incassum  meditanti  lumina  somnus 
Opprimit :  usque  eadem  vigilanti  cura  recursat. 

Non  tu  sacrileges  perdes,  Deus  !  ite,  profani ! 
Ite  procul,  scelerum  auctores,  caedisque  ministri ! 
Non  ego,  sancte,  tuos  hostes  hostilibus  iris 
Insequar  ?  en  !  bellum  tibi  bella  parantibus  ultro 
Indico;  neque  do  dextram,  neque  foedera  iungo, 
Tu  nunc  esto  mihi  testis  ;  tu  pectoris  ima 
Cerne,  Deus  !  penitusque  altos  scrutare  recessus. 
Excute,  siqua  mihi  caecis  concreta  medullis 
Haeret  adhuc  labes,  et  noxia  corda  refinge. 
Turn  sceleris  purum  accipias,  mittasque  salutis 
Aeternum  per  iter,  rectoque  in  tramite  ducas. 


OF  DRAMATIC  POETRY. 

L.ECTURE  XXX. 

THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON  NOT  A  REGULAR  DRAMA. 

The  Platonic  division  of  poetry  into  the  narrative,  dramatic,  and  mixed  kinds,  of  little  use  ;  but 
deserves  to  be  noticed  on  this  occasion,  as  leading  to  an  accurate  definition  of  dramatic  poe- 
try, and  clearing  up  the  ambiguity  in  which  the  term  has  been  involved  by  the  moderns — 
Two  species  pointed  out:  the  lesser,  which  possesses  only  the  form  of  dialogue,  without  the 
personal  intervention  of  the  poet;  and  the  greater,  which  contains  a  plot  or  fable — There  are 
extant  some  instances  of  the  former  in  the  writings  of  the  Hebrews  ;  but  none  of  their  pro- 
ductions seem  to  have  the  least  title  to  the  latter  character,  two  perhaps  excepted  ;  the  Song 
of  Solomon,  and  the  Book  of  Job — Inquiry,  whether  the  Song  of  Solomon  contain  a  complete 
plot  or  fable — It  is  anEpithalamium:  the  characters  which  are  represented  in  it:  the  poem 
founded  upon  the  nuptial  rites  of  the  Hebrews — The  opinion  of  Bossuet  cited  and  explained; 
namely,  that  this  poem  is  a  representation  of  the  seven  days  of  festival  which  succeeded  the 
marriage,  and  consequently  consists  of  seven  parts  or  divisions — This  opinion  the  most  fa- 
vourable of  all,  to  those  who  account  this  poem  a  regular  drama :  it  however  does  not  prove, 
that  it  contains  a  complete  plot  or  fable — Definition  of  a  dramatic  fable — Nothing  like  it  in 
the  Song  of  Solomon  :  it  is  therefore  not  a  perfect  drama,  but  is  of  the  lesser  class  of  dra- 
matic poems — The  chorus  of  virgins  bears  a  great  analogy  to  the  chorus  of  the  Greek  trage- 
dies ;  but  could  not  serve  as  a  model  for  them. 

THE  ancient  critics,  following  the  authority  of  Plato,1  have  dis- 
tributed all  poetical  compositions,  according  to  their  form  or  sub- 
ject, into  three  classes,  the  narrative,  the  imitative  or  dramatic,  and 
the  mixed.  This  arrangement  is,  however,  not  of  much  use  on  the 
whole ;  it  neither  draws  a  perfect  line  of  distinction  between  the 
different  species  of  poems,  nor  serves  to  define  or  explain  the  nature 
and  form  of  any.  There  is  scarcely  any  species  of  poem  perfectly 
simple  in  its  nature,  scarcely  any  which  does  not  occasionally  unite 
these  different  modes  of  expression.  The  epic  indeed  may  be  said 
to  exhibit  almost  invariably  a  narration  of  the  mixed  kind  ;  and  the 
dramatic  necessarily  assumes  the  imitative  form.  But  as  other 
poems  may  adopt  freely  the  mixed  narration ;  so  I  do  not  see  any 
just  reason  why  they  should  be  absolutely  prohibited  from  assuming 
the  dramatic  form.  Custom,  however,  we  find  has  so  far  prevailed, 
that  although  the  style  and  manner  does  not  seem  necessarily  ap- 

1  See  PLAT.  De  Rep.  lib,  iii. 


LECT.  XXX.  DRAMATIC  POETRY.  247 

propriated  to  any  particular  subject  whatever,  the  name  at  least  of 
dramatic  has  been  generally  received  as  distinguishing  a  particular 
species  of  poetry.  The  present  object  of  inquiry  is,  therefore,  what 
specimens  of  this  species  of  composition  are  extant  in  the  writings 
of  the  Hebrews :  and  in  the  very  first  stage  of  our  investigation, 
some  degree  of  caution  will  be  required,  lest  the  ambiguity  of  the 
term,  as  it  has  been  used  by  the  moderns,  should  mislead  or  perplex 
us. 

The  term  dramatic  poetry,  as  I  before  observed,  is  now  restrict- 
ed to  two  particular  species  of  composition,  tragedy  and  comedy. 
It  was  originally,  however,  of  much  more  extensive  signification  ; 
it  regarded  simply  the  external  form ;  it  was  properly  applied  to  eve- 
ry poem  composed  in  dialogue,  provided  that,  throughout  the  whole, 
the  conversation  was  carried  on  by  the  characters  themselves,  with- 
out the  intervention  of  the  poet.  This  mode  of  composition  is  ex- 
emplified in  several  of  the  Bucolics  of  Theocritus  and  Virgil,  and  in 
some  of  the  Satires  of  Horace,  and  in  two  of  his  Odes.  In  order, 
therefore,  to  examine  the  subject  more  accurately,  it  will  be  proper 
to  distinguish  two  species  of  dramatic  poems ;  the  lesser,  in  which, 
by  means  of  dialogue  or  characters,  the  manners,  passions,  and  ac- 
tions of  men,  are  imitated  or  delineated  ;  and  the  greater,  which 
contains,  moreover,  a  plot  or  fable,  that  is,  the  representation  of  some 
incident  or  transaction  of  life,  regular  or  complete,  in  which  events 
succeed  each  other  in  a  connected  series,  and  which  after  various 
and  interesting  vicissitudes  is  wrought  up  to  a  perfect  conclusion. 
This  latter  species  includes  both  tragedy  and  comedy ;  and  as  the 
plot  or  fable  distinguishes  them  from  the  inferior  species  of  dramatic 
poetry,  so  the  perfect  form  of  dialogue  serves  to  draw  the  line  be- 
tween them  and  the  epic. 

There  are  abundant  examples  of  the  former  species  of  dramatic 
poetry  manifestly  extant  in  the  writings  of  the  Hebrews  ;  and  per- 
haps there  are  many  others,  which  we  have  not  discovered  to  be  of 
this  kind. (A)  The  sudden  change  of  persons,  when  by  the  vehe- 
mence of  passion  the  author  is  led,  as  it  were  insensibly,  from  the 
narration  of  an  event  to  the  imitation  or  acting  of  it,  is  frequent  in 
the  Hebrew  poetry ;  but  sometimes  the  genuine  dramatic,  or  dia- 
logue form,  is  quite  apparent,  and  the  passage  will  admit  of  no  oth- 
er explanation.  The  twenty-fourth  Psalm  is  evidently  of  this  kind, 
relating,  as  I  formerly  endeavoured  to  prove,  to  the  transferring  of 
the  ark  to  mount  Sion  ;  and  the  whole  of  the  transaction  is  exhibit- 


248 


DRAMATIC   POETRY. 


LECT.  XXX. 


ed  in  a  theatrical  manner,  though  the  dialogue  is  not  fully  obvious 
till  towards  the  conclusion  of  the  poem.  That  remarkable  passage 
of  Isaiah  also,  deserves  notice  on  this  occasion,  in  which  the  Messi- 
ah, coming  to  vengeance,  is  introduced  conversing  with  a  chorus  ai 
on  a  theatre : 

GHO.     "  Quis  iste  qui  venit  ab  Edomo  ? 

'•  Tinctis  horrendum  vestibus  a  Botsra  ? 

"  Iste  verendus  ainictu, 

"  Grand!  passu  incedens  pro  maxima  vi  sua  ? 
MES.     "  Ego  iustitiae  praedicator,  potens  salutis. 
CHO.     "  Quare  rubet  amictus  tuus  ? 

"  Et  vestes  tuae  ut  calcantis  in  torculari  ? 
MES.     "  Torcular  calcavi  solus ; 

"  Et  ex  populis  nemo  vir  erat  mecum  : 

"  Et  calcavi  eos  in  ira  mea ; 

"  Et  protrivi  eos  in  aestu  meo  : 

"  Et  respersa  est  caedes  corum  in  vestes  meas, 

"  Et  omnem  amictum  meum  foedavi. 

"  Nam  dies  ultionis  in  corde  meo  est ; 

"  Et  annus  quo  meos  redimam  venit : 

"  Et  circumspexi,  neque  erat  adiutor ; 

"  Et  obstupui,  neque  enim  erat  sustentator  : 

"  Turn  mihi  salutem  praestitit  brachium  meum, 

"  Et  indignatio  mea  ipsa  me  sustentavit. 

"  Et  conculcavi  populos  in  ira  mea, 

"  Et  in  aestu  meo  ebrios  et  attonitos  reddidi, 

"  Et  caedem  eorum  derivavi  in  terrain."2 

The  hundred  and  twenty-first  Psalm  is  of  the  same  kind  ;  and  as 
it  is  both  concise  and  elegant,  I  shall  quote  it  at  large.  The  king, 
apparently  going  forth  to  battle,  first  approaches  the  ark  of  God 
upon  mount  Sion,  and  humbly  implores  the  divine  assistance,  on 
which  alone  he  professes  to  rest  his  confidence  : 

"  Attollam  oculos  meos  in  montes, 
"  Unde  venit  auxilium  meum. 
"  Auxilium  meum  est  a  lehova, 
"  Qui  fecit  coelos  et  terrain." 

The  high  priest  answers  him  from  the  tabernacle : 
"  Non  sinet  labi  pedem  tuum ; 
"  Non  dorrnitabit,  qui  te  custodit : 
"  Ecce  non  dormitabit,  neque  somno  succumbet, 
"  Qui  custodit  Israelem. 
"  lehova  te  custodiet; 


2  ISA.  Ixiii. 


LECT.  XXX.  DRAMATIC  POETRY.  249 


"  lehova  te  obumbrabit  addexteram. 

"  Interdiu  sol  non  te  laedet, 

"  Neque  luna  per  noctem. 

"  lehova  te  custodiet  ab  oinni  malo  ; 

"  Custodiet  etiam  animara  tuam. 

"  lehova  custodiet  exitum  tuum  et  introitum, 

"  Ex  hoc  tempore,  et  usque  in  saeculum." 

Thus  much  will  suffice  for  that  inferior  species  of  dramatic  poe- 
try, or  rather  that  dramatic  form  which  may  be  assumed  by  any 
species  of  poem.  The  more  perfect  and  regular  drama,  that  I  mean 
which  consists  of  a  plot  or  fable,  will  demand  a  more  elaborate  in- 
vestigation. 

There  are  only  two  poems  extant  among  the  writings  of  the 
Hebrews  which  can,  on  the  present  occasion,  at  all  be  brought  into 
question,  the  Song  of  Solomon,  and  the  book  of  Job;  both  eminent 
in  the  highest  degree  for  elegance,  sublimity,  and  I  am  sorry  to  add, 
obscurity  also.  T^ie  almost  infinite  labours  of  the  learned  have 
left  us  but  little  new  to  say  upon  this  subject ;  I  shall,  however, 
proceed  to  inquire,  with  some  degree  of  minuteness,  into  the  form 
and  structure  of  each  of  these  poems,  and  into  the  reasons  which 
may  be  alleged  in  favour  of  their  claim  to  the  appellation  of  regu- 
lar dramas.  The  opinions  of  other  critics  shall  not  pass  unregard- 
ed, if  any  remarks  or  even  conjectures  occur,  which  may  be  likely 
to  throw  any  light  upon  the  present  subject,  or  to  explain  or  illus- 
trate their  principal  beauties. 

The  Song  of  Songs  (for  so  it  is  entitled  either  on  account  of  the 
excellence  of  the  subject,  or  of  the  composition)  is  an  epithalamium, 
or  nuptial  dialogue ;  or  rather,  if  we  may  be  allowed  to  give  it  a 
title  more  agreeable  to  the  genius  of  the  Hebrew,  a  Song  of  Loves.3 
It  is  expressive  of  the  utmost  fervour  as  well  as  the  utmost  delicacy 
of  passion  ;  it  is  instinct  with  all  the  spirit  and  all  the  sweetness  of 
affection.  .  The  principal  characters  are  Solomon  himself  and  his 
bride,  who  are  represented  speaking  both  in  dialogue,  and  in  solilo- 
quy when  accidentally  separated.  Virgins  also,  the  companions  of 
the  bride,  are  introduced,  who  seem  to  be  constantly  upon  the  stage, 
and  bear  a  part  in  the  dialogue  :  mention  too  is  made  of  young  men, 
friends  of  the  bridegroom,  but  they  are  mute  persons.4  This  is 
exactly  conformable  to  the  manners  of  the  Hebrews,  who  had  always 


3  Such  is  the  title  of  Ps.  xlv. 

4  CANT.  v.  1.  viii.  13.  See  iii.  7—11 

32 


250  DRAMATIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXX. 

a  number  of  companions  to  the  bridegroom,  thirty  of  whom  were 
present  in  honour  of  Samson,  at  his  nuptial  feast.5  In  the  New 
Testament,  according  to  the  Hebrew  idiom,  they  are  callejl  "  chil- 
dren (or  sons)  of  the  bride-chamber,"  and  "  friends  of  the  bride- 
groom ;"  there  too  we  find  mention  of  ten  virgins,  who  went  forth 
to  meet  the  bridegroom,  and  conduct  him  home  :6  which  circum- 
stances, I  think,  indicate  that  this  poem  is  founded  upon  the  nuptial 
rites  of  the  Hebrews,  and  is  expressive  of  the  forms  or  ceremonial 
of  their  marriages.  In  this  opinion,  indeed,  the  harmony  of  com- 
mentators is  riot  less  remarkable,  than  their  disagreement  concern- 
ing the  general  economy  and  conduct  of  the  work,  and  the  order 
and  arrangement  of  the  several  parts.  The  present  object  of  inqui- 
ry, however,  is  only  whether  any  plot  or  fable  be  contained  or  re- 
presented in  this  poem ;  and  upon  this  point,  the  most  probable 
opinion  is  that  of  the  celebrated  Bossuet,7  a  critic,  whose  profound 
learning  will  ever  be  acknowledged,  and  a  scholar  whose  exquisite 
taste  will  ever  be  admired.  I  shall  endeavour,  as  briefly  as  possible, 
to  explain  his  sentiments  concerning  the  form  and  conduct  of  this 
poem,  whence  we  shall  probably  be  enabled  to  decide  in  some  meas- 
ure concerning  the  equity  of  its  claim  to  the  title  of  a  regular  drama. 
It  is  agreed  on  all  parts,  that  the  nuptial  feast,  as  well  as  every 
other  solemn  rite  among  the  Hebrews,  was  hebdomadal.8  Of  this 
circumstance  M.  Bossuet  has  availed  himself  in  the  analyzation  of 
the  poem,  and  he  accordingly  divides  the  whole  into  seven  parts, 
corresponding  to  the  seven  days  of  its  supposed  duration.  The  vi- 
cissitudes of  day  and  night  are  marked  with  some  degree  of  distinct- 
ness ;  he  therefore  makes  use  of  these  as  indexes,  to  point  to  the 
true  division  of  the  parts.  The  nuptial  banquet  being  concluded, 
the  bride  is  led  in  the  evening  to  her  future  husband ;  and  here 
commences  the  nuptial  week ;  for  the  Hebrews,  in  their  account  of 
time,  begin  always  at  the  evening.9  The  bridegroom,  who  is  repre- 
sented in  the  character  of  a  shepherd,  goes  forth  early  in  the  morn- 
ing to  the  accustomed  occupations  of  a  rural  and  pastoral  life  ;  the 
bride  presently  awaking,  and  impatient  of  his  absence,  breaks  out 
into  a  soliloquy  full  of  tenderness  and  anxiety,  and  this  incident 
forms  the  exordium  of  the  poem.  The  early  departure  of  the  bride- 


5  JtiD.  xiv.  11.       6  JOHN  iii.  29.     MATT.  ix.  15.  LIGHTFOOT  on  MATT.  ibid. 

7  See  BOSSUET,  Prsef.  et  Comment,  in  CANT. 

8  See  GEN.  xxix.  27.  JUD.  xiv.  12.  «  See  GEN.  i.  5,  etc. 


LECT.  XXX.        DRAMATIC  POETRY.  251 


groom  seems  to  be  according  to  custom  ;  hence  that  precaution  so 
frequently  and  so  anxiously  repeated,  not  to  disturb  his  beloved : 

"  Obtestor  vos,  Solymitides, 
"  Per  capreolas,  perque  cervas  agrestes, 
"  Ne  excitetis,  neve  expergefaciatis, 
"  Dilectissimam,  donee  ipsa  velit."10 

Nor  less  frequent  is  the  following  exclamation  of  the  virgins : 
"  Quaenara  est  Ilia,  quae  ascendit  e  deserto  ? — 
"  Quaenam  est  Ilia,  quae  prospectat,  ut  aurora?"11 

In  these  terms  they  seem  to  greet  the  bride  when  she  first  comes  out 
of  her  chamber  :  and  these  several  expressions  have  some  allusion 
to  the  early  time  of  the  morning.  The  night  is  also  sometimes  men- 
tioned in  direct  terms,  and  sometimes  it  is  indirectly  denoted  by 
circumstances.12  If  therefore  any  reader,  admitting  these  indica- 
tions of  time,  will  carefully  attend  to  them,  he  cannot,  I  think,  but 
perceive,  that  the  whole  of  the  work  consists  of  seven  parts  or  divis- 
ions, each  of  which  occupies  the  space  of  a  day.13  The  same  crit- 
ic adds,  that  he  can  discover  the  last  day  to  be  clearly  distinguished 
as  the  Sabbath  ;  for  the  bridegroom  does  not  then,  as  usual,  go 
forth  to  his  rural  employments,  but  proceeds  from  the  marriage 
chamber  into  public  with  his  bride.14  Such  are  the  sentiments  of 
this  learned  person  ;  to  which  I  am  inclined  to  accede,  not  as  abso- 
lute demonstration,  but  as  a  very  ingenious  and  probable  conjecture 
upon  an  extremely  obscure  subject :  I  follow  them  therefore  as  a 
glimmering  of  light,  which  beams  forth  in  the  midst  of  darkness, 
where  it  would  be  almost  unreasonable  to  hope  for  any  clearer  illu- 
mination. 

This  opinion  is  the  most  favourable  of  all  to  those  who  account 
the  Song  of  Solomon  a  regular  drama ;  for  this  arrangement  seems 
to  display,  in  some  measure,  the  order  and  method  of  a  theatrical 

10  Chap.  ii.  7.  iii.  5.  viii.  4.  H  Chap.  iii.  6.  viii.  5.  vi.  10. 

12  Chap.  iii.  1.  v.  2.  ii.  6.  viii.  3. 

13  The  following  is  the  distribution  of  the  work  according  to  BOSSUET  : 

1st  Day :  Chap,  i,  ii.  6. 

2d      — :  Chap.  ii.  7, 17. 

3d      — :  Chap.  iii.  v.  1. 

4th    —  :  Chap.  v.  2, vi.  9. 

5th    — :  Chap.  vi.  10, vii.  11. 

6th    — :  Chap.  vii.  12, viii.  3. 

7th    — :  Chap.  viii.  4, 14. 

14  Chap.  viii.  5. 


DRAMATIC  POETRY.  L.ECT.  XXX. 


representation.  But  if  they  make  use  of  the  term  dramatic  accor- 
ding to  the  common  acceptation  of  the  word,  this  poem  must  be 
supposed  to  contain  a  fable,  or  entire  and  perfect  plot  or  action,  of 
a  moderate  extent,  in  which  the  incidents  are  all  connected,  and 
proceed  regularly  from  one  another,  and  which,  after  several  vicissi- 
tudes, is  brought  to  a  perfect  conclusion.  But  certainly  the  bare 
representation  of  a  nuptial  festival  cannot  in  any  respect  answer  to 
this  definition.  We  are,  it  is  true,  very  imperfectly  instructed  in 
the  particular  rites  and  ceremonies  of  the  Hebrew  marriages;  but 
we  have  no  reason  to  suppose,  that  in  their  common  and  usual  form 
they  were  possessed  of  such  variety  and  vicissitude  of  fortunes  and 
events,  as  to  afford  materials  for  a  regular  plot  or  fable.  The  whole 
was  one  even  tenour  of  joy  and  festivity.  An  unexpected  incident 
might  indeed  sometimes  occur  to  interrupt  the  usual  order,  and  to 
produce  such  a  change  of  fortune,  as  might  afford  a  basis  for  a  dra- 
matic story  ;  and  if  any  such  incident  is  to  be  found  in  the  poem  at 
present  under  our  consideration,  it  will  establish  its  claim  to  that 
appellation.  But  the  truth  is,  the  keenest  inspection  of  criticism 
can,  throughout  the  whole,  discover  no  such  incident  or  circum- 
stance ;  the  state  of  affairs  is  uniformly  the  same  from  the  begin- 
ning to  the  end  ;  a  few  light  fluctuations  of  passion  excepted,  such 
as  the  anxiety  of  absence,  and  the  amenity  and  happiness  which 
the  lovers  enjoy  in  each  other's  presence.  The  bride  laments  the  ab- 
sence of  her  beloved  ;15  she  seeks,  she  finds  him,  she  brings  him 
home ;  again  he  is  lost,  she*  seeks  him  again,  but  with  different  suc- 
cess ;  she  complains,  languishes,  indites  messages  to  be  delivered 
to  him,  she  indulges  her  passion  in  a  full  and  animated  description 
of  his  person.  All  this,  however,  bears  no  resemblance  to  a  regular 
plot,  nor  affords  the  piece  any  fairer  title  to  the  appellation  of  a  per- 
fect drama,  than  the  dramatic  Eclogues  of  Theocritus  and  Virgil, 
in  which  the  loves,  the  amusements,  and  the  emulations  of  shep- 
herds are  depicted,  and  which  no  critic  has  ever  classed  with  the 
regular  fables  of  Euripides  and  Terence.  Thus  far  therefore  we 
may  safely  admit,  that  the  Song  of  Solomon  possesses  indeed  the 
dramatic  form,  and  therefore  belongs  properly  to  that  inferior  spe- 
cies, which  was  mentioned  in  the  former  part  of  this  lecture  ;  but 
that  it  cannot,  upon  any  fair  grounds  of  reason,  be  accounted  a  reg- 
ular drama. 

!5  Chap.  iii.  and  v. 


LECT.  XXX.  DRAMATIC  POETRY.  253 


There  is  however  one  circumstance  in  which  this  poem  bears  a 
very  near  affinity  to  the  Greek  drama  :  the  chorus  of  virgins  seems 
in  every  respect  congenial  to  the  tragic  chorus  of  the  Greeks. 
They  are  constantly  present,  and  prepared  to  fulfil  all  the  duties  of 
advice  and  consolation  :  they  converse  frequently  with  the  principal 
characters  ,  they  are  questioned  by  them,  and  they  return  answers 
to  their  inquiries ;  they  take  part  in  the  whole  buisness  of  the  poem, 
and  I  do  not  find  that  upon  any  occasion  they  quit  the  scene.  Some 
of  the  learned  have  conjectured,  that  Theocritus,  who  was  contem- 
porary with  the  seventy  Greek  translators  of  the  Scriptures,  and  liv- 
ed with  them  in  the  court  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  was  not  unac- 
quainted with  the  beauties  of  this  poem,  and  that  he  has  almost  liter- 
ally introduced  some  passages  from  it  into  his  elegant  Idylliums.16 
It  might  also  be  suspected,  that  the  Greek  tragedians  were  indebt- 
ed for  their  chorus  to  this  poem  of  Solomon,  were  not  the  probabili- 
ties on  the  other  side  much  greater,  that  the  Greeks  were  made  ac- 
quainted with  it  at  too  late  a  period  ;  and  were  it  not  evident,  that 
the  chorus  of  the  Greeks  had  a  very  different  origin  ;  were  it  not  ev- 
ident indeed  that  the  chorus  was  not  added  to  the  fable,  but  the  fa- 
ble to  the  chorus. (B) 


16  Compare  CANT.  i.4.  vi.  10,  with  THEOC.  xviii.  30.26;    CANT.  iv.  11,  with 
THEOC.  xx.  26  ;  CANT.  viii.  6.  7,  with  THEOC.  xxiii.  23—26. 


LECTURE  XXXI. 


ON  THE  SUBJECT  AND  STYLE  OF    SOLOMON'S  SONG. 


The  question  debated,  whether  the  Song  of  Solomon  is  to  be  taken  in  a  literal  or  allegorical 
sense  :  the  allegorical  sense  defended  upon  the  grounds  of  the  parabolic  style. — The  nature 
and  ground-work  of  this  allegory  explained. — The  fastidiousness  of  those  critics  reproved, 
who  pretend  to  take  offence  at  the  freedom  of  some  of  those  images  which  are  found  in  the 
Sacred  Writings;  the  nature  of  those  images  explained. — The  allegorical  interpretation  con- 
firmed by  analogical  arguments  :  not  equally  demonstrable  from  the  internal  structure  of  the 
work  itself. — This  allegory  of  the  third  or  mystical  species;  the  subject  literally  relating  to 
the  nuptials  of  Solomon. — Two  cautions  to  be  observed  by  commentators. — The  style  of  the 
poem  pastoral:  the  characters  are  represented  as  pastoral:  how  agreeable  this  to  the  man- 
ners of  the  Hebrews. — The  elegance  of  the  topics,  descriptions,  comparisons  of  this  poem  : 
illustrated  by  examples. 

HAVING,  in  my  last  Lecture,  briefly  explained  what  appeared  to 
me  most  probable,  among  the  great  variety  of  opinions  which  have 
prevailed,  concerning  the  conduct  and  economy  of  the  Song  of  Sol- 
omon, a  question  next  presents  itself  for  our  investigation,  not  less 
involved  in  doubt  and  obscurity,  I  mean  the  real  nature  and  subject 
of  the  poem.  Some  are  of  opinion,  that  it  is  to  be  taken  altogether 
in  a  literal  sense,  and  others  esteem  it  wholly  allegorical.  There  is  no 
less  disagreement  also  among  those  who  consider  it  as  allegorical ; 
some  conceive  it  to  be  no  more  than  a  simple  allegory,  while  others 
place  it  in  that  class  which  I  have  denominated  mystical,  that, 
namely,  which  is  founded  upon  the  basis  of  history.  I  would  glad- 
ly, from  the  first,  have  considered  this  question  as  foreign  to  my  un- 
dertaking, and  would  have  avoided  it  as  involved  in  the  deepest  ob- 
scurity, had  I  not,  in  the  former  part  of  these  Lectures,  been  under 
the  necessity  of  remarking  the  connexion  between  the  different  kinds 
of  allegory  and  the  principles  of  the  sacred  poetry  ;  had  I  not  also 
found  it  necessary  to  advert  to  all  the  peculiarities  of  the  parabolic 
style,  the  most  obvious  property  of  which  is  to  express  by  certain 
images,  chiefly  adopted  from  natural  objects,  the  analogy  and  appli- 
cation of  which  is  regularly  preserved,  those  ideas  and  doctrines 
which  are  more  remote  from  common  apprehension.  This  I  cannot 


LECT.  XXXI.  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON.  255 

help  considering  as  a  matter  of  the  utmost  importance,  in  enabling 
us  to  understand  properly  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  ;  and  upon  this 
point  much  of  the  present  argument  will  be  found  to  depend. 

I  shall  on  this,  as  well  as  upon  the  last  occasion,  proceed  with 
that  cautious  reserve  which  I  think  prudent  and  necessary  on  so  ob- 
scure a  subject ;  and  since  certainty  is  not  to  be  obtained,  I  shall 
content  myself  with  proposing  to  your  consideration  what  appears 
least  improbable.  In  the  first  place  then  I  confess,  that  by  several 
reasons,  by  the  general  authority  and  consent  of  both  the  Jewish  and 
Christian  churches ;  and  still  more,  by  the  nature  and  analogy  of 
the  parabolic  style,  I  feel  irresistibly  inclined  to  that  side  of  the  ques- 
tion which  considers  this  poem  as  an  entire  allegory.  Those,  in- 
deed, who  have  considered  it  in  a  different  light,  and  who  have  ob- 
jected against  the  inconsistency  and  meanness  of  the  imagery,  seem 
to  be  but  little  acquainted  with  the  genius  of  the  parabolic  diction  : 
for  the  removal,  therefore,  of  these  difficulties,  which  I  find  have 
been  the  cause  of  offence  to  many  persons,  I  shall  beg  leave  to  tres- 
pass upon  your  attention,  while  I  explain  somewhat  more  accurately 
the  nature  of  this  allegory,  and  its  analogy  with  other  productions  of 
the  Hebrew  poets. 

The  narrowness  and  imbecility  of  the  human  mind  being  such 
as  scarcely  to  comprehend  or  attain  a  clear  idea  of  any  part  of  the 
Divine  Nature  by  its  utmost  exertions,  God  has  condescended,  in  a 
manner,  to  contract  the  infinity  of  his  glory,  and  to  exhibit  it  to  our 
understandings  under  such  imagery  as  our  feeble  optics  are  capable 
of  contemplating.  Thus  the  Almighty  may  be  said  to  descend,  as  it 
were,  in  the  Holy  Scriptures,  from  the  height  of  his  majesty,  to  ap- 
pear on  earth  in  a  human  shape,  with  human  senses  and  affections, 
in  all  respects  resembling  a  mortal — "  with  human  voice  and  human 
form."  This  kind  of  allegory  is  called  anthropopathy,  and  occupies 
a  considerable  portion  of  theology,  properly  so  called,  that  is,  as  de- 
livered in  the  Holy  Scriptures.  The  principal  part  of  this  imagery 
is  derived  from  the  passions ;  nor  indeed  is  there  any  one  affection 
or  emotion  of  the  human  soul  which  is  not,  with  all  its  circumstanc- 
es, ascribed  in  direct  terms,  without  any  qualification  whatever,  to 
the  supreme  God  ;  not  excepting  those  in  which  human  frailty  and 
imperfection  is  most  evidently  displayed,  anger  and  grief,  hatred  and 
revenge.  That  love  also,  and  that  of  the  tenderest  kind,  should 
bear  a  part  in  this  drama,  is  highly  natural  and  perfectly  consistent. 
Thus,  not  only  the  fondness  of  paternal  affection  is  attributed  to 


256  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON.  L.ECT.  XXXI. 


God,  but  also  the  force,  the  ardour,  and  the  solicitude  of  conjugal 
attachment,  with  all  the  concomitant  emotions,  the  anxiety,  the 
tenderness,  the  jealousy  incidental  to  this  passion. 

After  all,  this  figure  is  not  in  the  least  productive  of  obscurity  ; 
the  nature  of  it  is  better  understood  than  that  of  most  others :  and 
although  it  be  exhibited  in  a  variety  of  lights,  it  constantly  preserves 
its  native  perspicuity.  A  peculiar  people,  of  the  posterity  of  Abra- 
ham, was  selected  by  God  from  among  the  nations,  and  he  ratified 
his  choice  by  a  solemn  covenant.  This  covenant  was  founded  upon 
reciprocal  conditions ;  on  the  one  part  love,  protection,  and  support ; 
on  the  other,  faith,  obedience,  and  worship  pure  and  devout.  This 
is  that  conjugal  union  between  God  and  his  church ;  that  solemn 
compact  so  frequently  celebrated  by  almost  all  the  sacred  writers  un- 
der this  image.  It  is  indeed  a  remarkable  instance  of  that  species 
of  metaphor  which  Aristotle  calls  analogical  j1  that  is,  when  in  a 
proposition  consisting  of  four  ideas,  the  first  bears  the  same  relation 
to  the  second  as  the  third  does  to  the  fourth,  and  the  corresponding 
words  may  occasionally  change  their  places  without  any  injury  to 
the  sense.  Thus  in  this  form  of  expression  God  is  supposed  to  bear 
exactly  the  same  relation  to  the  church  as  a  husband  to  a  wife  ; 
God  is  represented  as  the  spouse  of  the  church,  and  the  church  as 
the  betrothed  of  God.  Thus  also,  when  the  same  figure  is  maintain- 
ed with  a  different  mode  of  expression,  and  connected  with  different 
circumstances,  the  relation  is  still  the  same :  thus  the  piety  of  the 
people,  their  impiety,  their  idolatry,  and  rejection,  stand  in  the  same 
relation  with  respect  to  the  sacred  covenant ;  as  chastity,  modesty, 
immodesty,  adultery,  divorce,  with  respect  to  the  marriage  contract. 
And  this  notion  is  so  very  familiar  and  well  understood  in  Scripture, 
that  the  word  adultery  (or  whoredom)  is  commonly  used  to  denote--^ 
idolatrous  worship,  and  so  appropriated  does  it  appear  to  this  meta- 
phorical purpose,  that  it  very  seldom  occurs  in  its  proper  and  literal 
sense. 

Let  us  only  observe  how  freely  the  sacred  poets  employ  this 
image,  how  they  dwell  upon  it,  in  how  many  different  forms  they  in- 
troduce it,  and  how  little  they  seem  to  fear  exhibiting  it  with  all  its 
circumstances.  Concerning  the  reconciliation  of  the  church  to  Al- 
mighty God,  and  its  restoration  to  the  divine  favour,  amongst  many 
images  of  a  similar  nature,  the  elegant  Isaiah  introduces  the  fol- 
lowing : 

1  POET.  xxii.  and  RHET.  iii.  3. 


LECT.  XXXI.  THE  SONG  OP  SOLOMON.        J^*$r     o? 

"  Nam  Maritus  tibi  erit  Creator  tuus  fm- $ 

"  Nomen  ei  lehova  exercituum  : 

"  Et  redemptor  tuus  sanctus  Israelis ;  ^^^J  £  Jl 

"  Deus  universae  terrae  vocabitur."2 

And  in  another  passage  in  the  form  of  a  comparison  : 

"  Nam  ut  luvenis  uxorem  ducit  virginem, 
"  Ita  te  uxorem  ducet  conditor  tuus  : 
"  Et  ut  sponsus  in  sponsa  gaudet, 
"  Ita  in  te  gaudebit  Deus  tuus."3(x) 

The  same  image  a  little  diversified,  and  with  greater  freedom  of  ex- 
pression, as  better  adapted  to  the  display  of  indignation,  is  introduc- 
ed by  Jeremiah,  when  he  declaims  against  the  defection  of  the  Jews 
from  the  worship  of  the  true  God.4  Upon  the  same  principle  the 
former  part  of  the  prophecy  of  Hosea  ought  also  to  be  explained  ; 
and  whether  that  part  of  the  prophecy  be  taken  in  the  literal  and 
historical  sense,  or  whether  it  be  esteemed  altogether  allegorical, 
still  the  nature  and  principles  of  this  figure,  which  seems  consecrat- 
ed in  some  measure  to  this  subject,  will  evidently  appear.  None  of 
the  prophets,  however,  have  applied  the  image  with  so  much  bold- 
ness and  freedom  as  Ezekiel,  an  author  of  a  most  fervid  imagina- 
tion, who  is  little  studious  of  elegance,  or  cautious  of  offending  ;  in- 
somuch, that  I  am  under  some  apprehension  of  his  incurring  no  in- 
considerable share  of  censure  from  those  over-delicate  critics  who 
have  been  emitted  from  the  Gallic  schools. (B)  His  great  freedom  in 
the  use  of  this  image  is  particularly  displayed  in  two  parables,  in 
which  he  describes  the  ingratitude  of  the  Jews  and  Israelites  to 
their  great  Protector,  and  their  defection  from  the  true  worship,  un- 
der imagery  assumed  from  the  character  of  an  adulterous  wife,  and 
the  meretricious  loves  of  two  unchaste  women.5  If  these  parables 
(which  are  put  into  the  mouth  of  God  himself,  with  a  direct  allego- 
rical application,  and  in  which  it  must  be  confessed,  that  delicacy 
does  not  appear  to  be  particularly  studied)  be  well  considered,  I  am 
persuaded,  that  the  Song  of  Solomon  (which  is  in  every  part  chaste 
and  elegant)  will  not  appear  unworthy  of  the  divine  sense  in  which 
it  is  usually  taken,  either  in  matter  or  style,  or  in  any  degree  inferi- 
or either  in  gravity  or  purity  to  the  other  remains  of  the  sacred 
poets.  To  these  instances  I  may  add  the  forty-fifth  Psalm,  which  is 
a  sacred  epithalamium,  of  the  allegorical  application  of  which,  to  the 

2  ISA.  liv.  5.  3  See  JOHN  iii.  29.  4  JER.  iii.  i}  etc. 

5EZKK.  xvi.  andxxiii. 

33 


258  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON.  L.ECT.  XXXT. 


union  between  God  and  the  church,  I  do  not  find  that  any  doubt  has 
hitherto  been  entertained  ;  though  many  suspect  it,  and  not  without 
good  reason,  ter  have  been  produced  upon  the  same  occasion,  and 
with  the  same  relation  to  a  real  fact,  as  the  Song  of  Solomon.  Nei- 
ther ought  we  to  omit,  that  the  writers  of  the  New  Testament  have 
freely  admitted  the  same  image  in  the  same  allegorical  sense  with 
their  predecessors,  and  have  finally  consecrated  it  by  their  au- 
thority.6 

These  reasons  appear  to  me  sufficient  to  remove  those  objections 
founded  on  the  meanness  of  the  imagery,  which  render  many  critics 
averse  to  the  allegorical  explanation  of  this  poem.  I  shall  not  at- 
tempt to  confirm  this  opinion  by  any  internal  evidence  from  the 
poem  itself,  as  I  do  not  scruple  to  confess  myself  deterred  by  the 
great  difficulty  of  the  undertaking.  For  though  induced  by  the  most 
ancient  authority,  and  still  more  by  the  analogy  of  this  with  other 
similar  allegories  contained  in  the  Hebrew  writings,  I  am  fully  per- 
suacjed  of  the  truth  of  what  I  have  advanced  ;  yet  I  am  still  appre- 
hensive, that  it  would  be  extremely  difficult  to  establish  the  hypothe- 
sis by  direct  arguments  from  the  internal  structure  of  the  work 
itself.(c) 

But  if,  after  all,  it  be  allowed  that  this  work  is  of  the  allegorical 
kind,  another  question  remains,  namely,  to  which  of  the  three  clas- 
ses of  allegory  already  specified,  it  properly  belongs.  The  first  of 
these,  you  will  recollect,  was  the  continued  metaphor ;  the  second 
the  parable,  strictly  so  called  ;  and  the  third,  the  mystical  allegory, 
which,  under  the  veil  of  some  historical  fact,  conceals  a  meaning 
more  sacred  and  sublime.  I  must  confess,  that  I  am  clearly  of  the 
same  opinion  with  those  who  assign  this  production  to  the  latter 
class  of  allegories  ;  the  reason  of  which  will  be  evident,  if  it  be  ad- 
mitted that  there  is  any  thing  in  the  poem  at  all  allegorical ;  since 
there  can  scarcely  be  any  doubt  that  it  relates  in  a  literal  sense  to 
the  nuptials  of  Solomon.  Those  also  who  are  conversant  with  the 
writings  of  the  Hebrew  poets,  will  easily  perceive  how  agreeable  the 
conduct  of  this  poem  is  to  the  practice  of  those  writers,  who  are  fond 
of  annexing  a  secret  and  solemn  sense  to  the  obvious  meaning  of 
their  compositions,  and  of  looking  through  the  medium  of  human  af- 
fairs to  those  which  are  celestial  and  divine.  The  subject  of  the 

6  See  MATT.  ix.  15,  JOHN  iii.  29,  2  COR.  xi.  2,  EPH.  v.  23,  etc.  REV.  xix. 
7,  xxi.  2,  xxii.  17. 


LECT.  XXXI.  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON.  259 

Canticles  appears  to  be  the  marriage  feast  of  Solomon  (who  was 
both  in  name  and  in  reality  the  prince  of  peace  ;)  his  bride  is  also 
called  Solomitis,1  the  same  name  with  a  feminine  termination ; 
though  the  later  Jews  have  strangely  disguised  and  obscured  it  by 
a  vicious  pronunciation  :  for  Solomon  and  Solomitis  have  evidently 
the  same  relation  to  each  other,  as  the  Latin  names  Caius  and  Caia. 
This  circumstance  of  the  names  was  not  to  be  disregarded,  since 
they  seem  to  have  a  very  strict  connexion,  and  to  afford  a  very  dis- 
tinct intimation  of  the  latent  meaning  :  for  to  what  purpose  inno- 
vate the  usual  practice  of  the  Hebrews,  by  assigning  to  the  wife  of 
Solomon  the  same  name,  unless  from  a  regard  to  the  force  and  mean- 
ing of  the  word  ?  Unless  it  was  meant  to  indicate,  that  the  name  of 
Solomon  himself  was  not  without  importance,  not  without  some  fur- 
ther aim  than  merely  the  distinction  of  the  person  1  Who  this  wife 
of  Solomon  was,  is  not  clearly  ascertained  :  but  some  of  the  learned 
have  conjectured,  with  an  appearance  of  probability,  that  she  was 
the  daughter  of  Pharaoh,  to  whom  Solomon  was  known  to  be  par- 
ticularly attached.  May  we  not,  therefore,  with  some  shadow  of  rea- 
son, suspect,  that  under  the  allegory  of  Solomon  choosing  a  wife 
from  the  Egyptians,  might  be  darkly  typified  that  other  Prince  of 
Peace,  who  was  to  espouse  a  church,  chosen  from  among  the  Gentiles? 
Concerning  the  explanation  of  this  allegory,  I  will  only  add, 
that,  in  the  first  place,  we  ought  to  be  cautious  of  carrying  the  fig- 
urative application  too  far,  and  of  entering  into  a  precise  explication 
of  every  particular  :  as  these  minute  investigations  are  seldom  con- 
ducted with  sufficient  prudence  not  to  offend  the  serious  part  of 
mankind,  learned  as  well  as  unlearned.  Again,  I  would  advise, 
that  this  production  be  treated  according  to  the  established  rules  of 
this  kind  of  allegory,  fully  and  expressly  delivered  in  the  Sacred  Writ- 
ings, and  that  the  author  be  permitted  to  be  his  own  interpreter.  In 
this  respect,  the  errors  of  critics  and  divines  have  been  as  numerous 
as  they  have  been  pernicious.8  Not  to  mention  other  absurdities, 
they  have  taken  the  allegory,  not  as  denoting  the  universal  state  of 
the  church,  but  the  spiritual  state  of  individuals  ;  than  which,  noth- 
ing can  be  more  inconsistent  with  the  very  nature  and  ground-work 
of  the  allegory  itself,  as  well  as  with  the  general  practice  of  the 
brew  poets  on  these  occasions. 

7  r^te^ie,  HteVtJ  which  maybe  expressed  in  Greek  JSWoucw,   S 
CANT.  viii.  1. 

8  BERNARD,  DURHAM.  SANCTIUS.  BOSSUET.  and  others. 


260  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON.  L.ECT.  XXXI. 

It  remains  to  offer  a  few  remarks  upon  the  style  of  this  poem. 
I  formerly  intimated  that  it  was  of  the  pastoral  kind ;  since  the  two 
principal  personages  are  represented  in  the  character  of  shepherds.9 
This  circumstance  is  by  no  means  incongruous  to  the  manners  of 
the  Hebrews,  whose  principal  occupation  consisted  in  the  care  of 
cattle  ;10  nor  did  they  consider  this  employment  as  beneath  the  dig- 
nity of  the  highest  characters.  Least  of  all,  could  it  be  supposed  in- 
consistent with  the  character  of  Solomon,  whose  father  was  raised 
from  the  sheep-fold  to  the  throne  of  Israel.  The  pastoral  life  is  not 
only  most  delightful  in  itself,  but,  from  the  particular  circumstances 
and  manners  of  the  Hebrews,  is  possessed  of  a  kind  of  dignity.  In 
this  poem  it  is  adorned  with  all  the  choicest  colouring  of  language, 
with  all  the  elegance  and  variety  of  the  most  select  imagery. 
"  Every  part  of  the  Canticles,"  says  a  modern  writer,  "  abounds  in 
poetical  beauties ;  the  objects,  which  present  themselves  on  every 
side,  are  the  choicest  plants,  the  most  beautiful  flowers,  the  most 
delicious  fruits,  the  bloom  and  vigour  of  spring,  the  sweet  verdure  of 
the  fields,  flourishing  and  well-watered  gardens,  pleasant  streams, 
and  perennial  fountains.  The  other  senses  are  represented  as  re- 
galed with  the  most  precious  odours,  natural  and  artificial ;  with  the 
sweet  singing  of  birds,  and  the  soft  voice  of  the  turtle  ;  with  milk 
and  honey,  and  the  choicest  of  wine.  To  these  enchantments  are 
added  all  that  is  beautiful  and  graceful  in  the  human  form,  the  en- 
dearments, the  caresses,  the  delicacy  of  love  ;  if  any  object  be  in- 
troduced which  seems  not  to  harmonize  with  this  delightful  scene, 
such  as  the  awful  prospect  of  tremendous  precipices,  the  wildness 
of  the  mountains,  or  the  haunts  of  the  lions  ;  its  effect  is  only  to 
heighten  by  the  contrast  the  beauty  of  the  other  objects,  and  to  add 
the  charms  of  variety  to  those  of  grace  and  elegance."11  In  the 
following  passage  the  force  and  splendour  of  description  is  united 
with  all  the  softness  and  tenderness  of  passion  : 

"  Surge,  age,  deliciae  meae  ! 

"  Formosa  mea,  et  veni ! 

"  Ecce  enim  Hyems  praeteriit ; 

"  Pluvia  tempestas  transiit,  abiit : 

"  Apparent  humi  flosculi ; 

"  Tempus  adest  cantus  avium ; 

"  Et  vox  turturis  in  terra  nostra  auditur. 

9  See  chap.  i.  7,  8.  10  See  GEN.  xlvi.  33—34. 

U  BOSSUET,  Preface  to  the  Canticles. 


LECT.  XXXI.  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON.  261 


"  Ficus  dulci  succo  condivit  fructus  suos, 
"  Et  vineae  florescentes  odorem  difFundunt. 
"  Surge,  age,  deliciae  meae  ! 
"  Formosa  mea,  et  veni  !"12 

The  following  comparisons  abound  in  sweetness  and  delicacy : 
"  Quam  iucundi  sunt  araores  tui,  o  soror  mea,  o  sponsa ! 
"  Quanto  dulciores  amores  tui  vino, 
"  Et  odor  unguentorum  tuorum  omnibus  aromatis  ! 
"  Labia  tua,  o  sponsa,  sunt  favi  stillantes ; 
"  Mel  et  lac  sub  lingua  tua ; 
"  Et  odor  vestium  tuarum,  sicut  odor  Libani."13 

There  are  some  others  which  demand  a  more  accurate  investigation. 

"  Capilli  tui  sicut  grex  caprarum, 
"  E  monte  Galaado  emicantium."14 

The  hair  of  the  goats  was  soft,  smooth,  of  a  yellow  cast,  like  that  of 
the  bride  ;15  her  beautiful  tresses  are  compared  with  the  numerous 
flocks  of  goats  which  covered  this  flourishing  mountain  from  the  top 
to  the  bottom. 

"  Dentes  tui  sicut  grex  ovium  praecise  aequalium, 

"  Quae  e  lavacro  ascendunt : 

"  Omnes  inter  se  gemellae, 

"  Neque  est  ulla  pari  suo  orba." 

The  evenness,  whiteness,  and  unbroken  order  of  the  teeth,  is  ad- 
mirably expressed. 

"  Labella  tua  sicut  filum  coccineum  ; 

"  Et  decorus  sermo  tuus." 

That  is,  thin  and  ruby-coloured,  such  as  add  peculiar  graces  to  the 
sweetness  of  the  voice. 

"  Genae  tuae,  sicut  sectio  mali  punici, 

"  Cincinnis  tuis  intermicantes." 

Partly  obscured,  as  it  were,  by  her  hair,  and  exhibiting  a  gentle 
blush  of  red  from  beneath  the  delicate  shade,  as  the  seeds  of  the 
pomegranate  (the  colour  of  which  is  white  tinged  with  red)  sur- 
rounded by  the  rind. 

"  Collum  tuum,  sicut  turris  Davidis, 

"  In  pinnas  extructa ; 

"  In  qua  pendent  mille  clypei, 

"  Arma  virorum  fortium." 

The  neck  is  described  as  long,  erect,  slender,  according  to  the 

12  Chap.  ii.  10—13.  13  Chap.  iv.  10, 11.  l4  Chap.  iv.  1—6. 

15  See  chap.  vii.  5,  and  compare  1  Sam.  xix.  13, 16  with  xvi.  12.     Consult 
BOCHART,  Hieroz.  part  i.  lib.  ii.  51. 


262  THE  SONG  OF  SOLOMON.  L.ECT.  XXXI. 

nicest  proportion  ;  decorated  with  gold,  gems,  and  large  pearls.  It 
is  compared  with  some  turret  of  the  citadel  of  Sion,  more  lofty  than 
the  rest,  remarkable  for  its  elegance,  and  not  less  illustrious  for  its 
architecture  than  for  the  trophies  with  which  it  was  adorned,  being 
hung  round  with  shields  and  other  implements  of  war. 

"  Duae  mamillae  tuae,  sicut  duo  hinrmlei, 
"  Gemelli  capreolae, 
"  Pascentes  inter  lilia." 

Delicate  and  smooth,  standing  equally  prominent  from  the  ivory 
bosom.  The  animal  with  which  they  are  compared  is  an  animal  of 
exquisite  beauty,  and  from  that  circumstance  it  derives  its  name  in 
the  Hebrew.  Nothing  can,  I  think,  be  imagined  more  truly  elegant 
and  poetical  than  all  these  passages,  nothing  more  apt  or  expressive, 
than  these  comparisons.  The  discovery  of  these  excellencies,  how- 
ever, only  serves  to  increase  our  regret  for  the  many  beauties  which 
we  have  lost,  the  perhaps  superior  graces,  which  extreme  antiquity 
seems  to  have  overcast  with  an  impenetrable  shade. (D) 


LECTURE  XXXII. 

OF    THE    POEM    OF    JOB. 

In  order  to  criticise  the  book  of  Job  with  any  degree  of  satisfaction  to  his  auditors,  the  critic 
must  explain  his  own  sentiments  concerning  the  work  in  general — The  book  of  Job  a  singu- 
lar composition,  and  has  little  or  no  connexion  with  the  affairs  of  the  Hebrews — The  seat  of 
the  history  is  Iduroaea  ;  and  the  characters  are  evidently  Idumsean,of  the  family  of  Abraham: 
the  author  appears  to  be  an  Iduinsfian,  who  spoke  the  Hebrew  as  his  vernacular  tongue — Nei- 
ther Elihu  nor  Moses,  rather  Job  himself,  or  some  contemporary — This  appears  to  be  the 
oldest  book  extant :  founded  upon  true  history,  and  contains  no  allegory — Although  extreme* 
Jy  obscure,  still  the  general  subject  and  design  are  sufficiently  evident — A  short  and  general 
analysis  of  the  whole  work;  in  which  the  obscurer  passages  are  brought  as  little  as  possible 
in  question — The  deductions  from  this  disquisition — 1.  The  subject  of  the  controversy  be- 
tween Job  and  his  friends — 2.  The  subject  of  the  whole  poem — 3.  Its  end  or  purpose — All 
questions  not  necessarily  appertaining  to  this  point,  to  be  avoided. 

SUCH  a  diversity  of  opinions  has  prevailed  in  the  learned  world 
concerning  the  nature  and  design  of  the  poem  of  Job,  that  the  only 
point  in  which  commentators  seem  to  agree,  is  the  extreme  obscuri- 
ty of  the  subject.  To  engage,  therefore,  in  an  undertaking  on  which 
so  much  erudition  has  been  expended,  to  tread  the  same  paths  which 
so  many  have  already  traversed  in  vain,  may  seem  to  require  some 
apology  for  the  temerity,  not  to  say  the  presumption,  of  the  attempt. 
Though  I  might  allege,  that  the  authority  of  the  most  learned  men 
is  lessened  in  some  measure  by  the  discordance  of  their  opinions  ; 
and  that  therefore  the  failure  of  others  is  the  more  readily  to  be  ex- 
cused. I  will,  however,  make  use  of  no  such  defence,  but  will  en- 
trench myself  rather  in  the  necessity  and  in  the  nature  of  my  pres- 
ent undertaking.  I  pretend  not  to  any  new  discoveries  ;  I  presume 
not  to  determine  the  subtile  controversies  of  the  learned ;  I  scarcely 
venture  to  indulge  a  hope  of  being  able  to  illustrate  any  obscurities. 
My  sole  intention  is  to  collect,  from  such  passages  as  appear  the  least 
intricate,  the  most  probable  conjectures  :  and  what  I  conceive  to 
have  any  tolerable  foundation  in  fact,  that  I  mean  to  propose,  not  as 
demonstration,  but  as  opinion  only.  I  proceed  in  this  manner  upon 
the  principle,  that,  considering  the  great  discordance  of  sentiments 
upon  this  subject,  it  would  be  impossible  for  any  man  to  discourse 
with  a  sufficient  degree  of  accuracy  and  perspicuity  upon  the  struc- 


264  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  LECT.  XXXII. 

ture  and  parts  of  this  poem,  unless  he  previously  explained  his  own 
ideas  concerning  the  scope  and  purport  of  the  work  in  general. 

The  book  of  Job  appears  to  me  to  stand  single  and  unparalleled 
in  the  sacred  volume.  It  seems  to  have  little  connexion  with  the 
other  writings  of  the  Hebrews,  and  no  relation  whatever  to  the  af- 
fairs of  the  Israelites.  The  scene  is  laid  in  Idumaea ;  the  history  of 
an  inhabitant  of  that  country  is  the  basis  of  the  narrative ;  the  char- 
acters who  speak  are  Idumseans,  or  at  least  Arabians  of  the  adjacent 
country,  all  originally  of  the  race  of  Abraham. (A)  The  language  is 
pure  Hebrew,  although  the  author  appears  to  be  an  Idumaean  ;  for 
it  is  not  improbable  that  all  the  posterity  of  Abraham,  Israelites, 
Idumaeans,  and  Arabians,  whether  of  the  family  of  Keturah  or  Ish- 
mael,  spoke  for  a  considerable  length  of  time  one  common  language. 
That  the  Idumaeans,  however,  and  the  Temanites  in  particular,  were 
eminent  for  the  reputation  of  wisdom,  appears  by  the  testimony  of 
the  prophets  Jeremiah  and  Obadiah  i1  Baruch  also  particularly  men- 
tions them  amongst  "  the  authors  (or  expounders)  of  fables,  and 
searchers  out  of  understanding."2  /  The  learned  are  very  much  di- 
vided in  their  sentiments  concerning  the  author  of  this  book.  Our 
Lightfoot  conjectures  that  it  is  the  production  of  Elihu  ;  and  this 
Conjecture  seems  at  first  sight  rather  countenanced  by  the  exordium 
to  the  first  speech  of  Elihu,  in  which  he  seems  to  assume  the  char- 
acter of  the  author,  by  continuing  the  narrative  in  his  own  person.3 
That  passage,  however,  which  appears  to  interrupt  the  speech  of 
Elihu,  and  to  be  a  part  of  the  narrative,  is,  I  apprehend,  nothing 
more  than  an  apostrophe  to  Job,  or  possibly  to  himself;  for  it  mani- 
festly consists  of  two  distichs,  while,  on  the  contrary,  it  is  well  known 
that  all  the  narrative  parts,  all  in  which  the  author  himself  appears, 
are  certainly  written  in  prose.  Another  opinion,  which  has  been 
still  more  generally  received,  attributes  the  work  to  Moses.  This 
conjecture,  however,  for  I  cannot  dignify  it  with  any  higher  appella- 
tion, will  be  found  to  rest  altogether  upon  another,  namely,  that  this 
poem  was  originally  a  consolatory  address  to  the  Israelites,  and  an 
allegorical  representation  of  their  situation  :  and  I  must  confess,  I 
can  scarcely  conceive  any  thing  more  futile  than  such  an  hypothe- 
sis, since  it  is  impossible  to  trace,  throughout  the  whole  book,  the 
slightest  allusion  to  the  manners,  customs,  ceremonies,  or  history  of 
the  Israelites.  I  will  add,  moreover,  that  the  style  of  Job  appears  to 

1  JER.  xlix.  7.     OBA.  8.        2  BARUCH  iii.  22,  23.        3  JOB  xxxii.  15, 16. 


LECT.  XXXII.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  265 


me  materially  different  from  the  poetical   style  of  Moses  j  for  it  is 
much  more  compact,  concise,  or  condensed,   more  accurate  in  the 
poetical  conformation  of  the  sentences  :  as  may  be  observed  also  in 
the  prophecies  of  Balaam,  the  Mesopotamian,   a  foreigner   indeed 
with  respect  to  the  Israelites,   but  neither  unacquainted  with  their 
language,  nor  with  the  worship  of  the.  true  God.     I  confess  myself 
therefore,  on  the  whole,  more  inclined  to  favour  the  opinion  of  those 
who  suppose  Job  himself,  or  some  contemporary,  to  be  the  author  of 
this  poem  :  for  that  it  is  the  most  ancient  of  all  the  sacred  books,  is, 
I  think,  manifest,  from  the  subject,  the  language,  the  general  char- 
acter, and  even  from  the  obscurity  of  the  work.     Concerning  the 
time  also  in  which  Job  lived,  although  not  directly  specified,  I  see 
no  great  reason  for  doubt.     The  length  of  his  life  evinces  that  he 
was  before  Moses,  and  probably  contemporary  with  the  patriarchs. 
Not   however  to    dwell  upon   the  innumerable  hypotheses  of  the 
learned  on  this  subject,  I  will  only  mention,  that  there  is  the  utaiost 
probability  of  his  having  lived  prior  to  the  promulgation  of  the  law, 
from  the  nature  of  the   sacrifice  which  he  institutes  conformably  to 
the  command  of  God,  namely,  seven  oxen  and  seven  rams :  for  it  is 
plain,  from  the  example  of  Balaam,  that  a  respect  for  that  number 
prevailed  in  those  countries,  arid  at  that  period,  from  the  traditional 
accounts  which  were  still  preserved  among  them  of  the  seven  days 
of  creation.4     The  truth  of  the  narrative  would  never,  I  am  persuad- 
ed, have  been  called  in  question,  but  from  the  immoderate  affection 
of  some  allegorizing  mystics  for  their  own  fictions,  which  run  to  such 
excess,  as  to  prevent  them  from  acceding  to  any  thing  but  what  is 
visionary  and  typical.     When  I  speak  of  the  poem  as  founded  in 
fact,  I  would  be  understood  no  further  than  concerns  the  general 
subject  of  the  narrative,  for  I  apprehend  all  the  dialogue,  and  most 
likely  some  other  parts,  have  partaken  largely  of  the  embellishments 
of  poetry ;  but  I  cannot  allow  that  this  has  by  any  means  extended 
so  far  as  to  convert  the  whole  into  an  allegory.     Indeed  I  have  not 
been  able  to  trace  any  vestige  of  an  allegorical  meaning  throughout 
the  entire  poem.     And  should  even  the  exordium  be  suspected  to  be 
of  this  nature,  we  must  recollect,  that  the  historical   books  are  not 
destitute  of  similar  narratives.5     The   exordium  and  conclusion  I 
agree  are  distinct  from  the  poem  itself,  and  stand  in  the  place  of  an 

4  JOB  xlii.  8.     Compare  NUMB,  x.xiii.  I,  etc. 

5  JOB  i.  6,  etc.  ii.  1,  etc.     Compare  1  KINGS  xxiu  19—29. 

34 


266  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XXXII. 

argument  or  illustration  ;  that  they  are  however  coeval  with  the  po- 
etical part,  and  the  work  of  the  same  author,  is  evident,  since  they  are 
indispensably  necessary  to  the  unravelling  of  the  plot,  which  is  not  de- 
veloped in  the  body  of  the  poem.  There  are,  it  is  true,  phrases  ex- 
tant in  the  exordium,  in  which  some  critics  have  pretended  to  dis- 
cover the  hand  of  a  later  writer ;  the  arguments,  however,  of  these 
critics  I  cannot  esteem  of  any  great  force  or  importance. (B) 

That  these  points  should  be  accounted  of  a  very  ambiguous  na- 
ture, and  should  cause  much  embarrassment  and  controversy  in  the 
learned  world,  is  nothing  extraordinary  ;  but  that  the  main  object 
and  design  of  the  poem  should  ever  have  been  called  in  question, 
may  justly  excite  our  astonishment.  For  though  many  passages  be 
confessedly  obscure,  though  there  be  several  which  I  fear  no  human 
skill  will  ever  be  able  to  unravel ;  and  though  the  obscurity  consist 
chiefly  in  the  connexion  of  the  incidents  and  the  sentiments,  it  by 
no  means  necessarily  follows,  that  the  whole  is  involved  in  impene- 
trable darkness.  The  case  indeed  is  far  otherwise,  for  one  and  the 
same  light,  though  at  intervals  overcast,  shines  on  through  the 
whole,  and,  like  a  conducting  star,  uniformly  leads  to  the  same 
point.  If  then  any  person  will  follow  this  guidance  without  perplex- 
ing himself  with  obscurities  which  he  will  occasionally  meet,  I  have 
very  little  doubt  but  that  he  will  clearly  discern  the  end,  the  subject, 
the  connexion,  and  arrangement  of  the  whole  work.  It  will,  per- 
haps, be  worth  while  to  put  to  trial  the  efficacy  of  this  maxim  :  let 
us,  therefore,  for  the  present,  pass  over  those  obscurities  which  might 
impede  our  progress:  and,  making  the  best  use  of  those  lights  which 
are  afforded  by  the  more  obvious  passages,  proceed  with  an  attentive 
eye  through  the  whole  of  the  work,  and  observe  whether  something 
satisfactory  is  not  to  be  discovered  relating  to  the  subject  of  the  nar- 
rative and  the  design  and  intent  of  the  poem. 

The  principal  object  held  forth  to  our  contemplation  in  this  pro- 
duction, is  the  example  of  a  good  man,  eminent  for  his  piety,  and  of 
approved  integrity,  suddenly  precipitated  from  the  very  summit  of 
prosperity  into  the  lowest  depths  of  misery  and  ruin  :  who,  having 
been  first  bereaved  of  his  wealth,  his  possessions,  and  his  children, 
is  afterwards  afflicted  with  the  most  excruciating  anguish  of  a  loath- 
some disease  which  entirely  covers  his  body.  He  sustains  all  how- 
ever with  the  mildest  submission,  and  the  most  complete  resignation 
to  the  will  of  Providence  :  "  In  all  this,"  says  the  historian,  "Job 
sinned  not,  nor  charged  God  foolishly."  And  after  the  second  trial, 


LECT.  XXXII.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  267 

"  In  all  this  did  not  Job  sin  with  his  lips."6  The  author  of  the  his- 
tory remarks  upon  this  circumstance  a  second  time,  in  order  to  ex- 
cite the  observation  of  the  reader,  and  to  render  him  more  attentive 
to  what  follows,  which  properly  constitutes  the  true  subject  of  the 
poem  :  namely,  the  conduct  of  Job  with  respect  to  his  reverence  for 
the  Almighty,  and  the  changes  which  accumulating  misery  might 
produce  in  his  temper  and  behaviour.  Accordingly  we  find  that 
another  still  more  exquisite  trial  of  his  patience  yet  awaits  him,  and 
which  indeed,  as  the  writer  seems  to  intimate,  he  scarcely  appears 
to  have  sustained  with  equal  firmness,  namely,  the  unjust  suspicions, 
the  bitter  reproaches,  and  the  violent  altercations  of  his  friends,  who 
had  visited  him  on  the  pretence  of  affording  consolation.  Here  com- 
mences the  plot  or  action  of  the  poem  :  for  when,  after  a  long  si- 
lence of  all  parties,  the  grief  of  Job  breaks  forth  into  passionate  ex- 
clamations, and  a  vehement  execration  on  the  day  of  his  birth ;  the 
minds  of  his  friends  are  suddenly  exasperated,  their  intentions  are 
changed,  and  their  consolation,  if  indeed  they  originally  intended 
any,  is  converted  into  contumely  and  reproaches.  The  first  of  these 
three  singular  comforters  reproves  his  impatience  ;  calls  in  question 
his  integrity,  by  indirectly  insinuating  that  God  does  not  inflict 
such  punishments  upon  the  righteous  ;  and  finally,  admonishes  him, 
that  the  chastisement  of  God  is  not  to  be  despised.  The  next  of 
them,  not  less  intemperate  in  his  reproofs,  takes  it  for  granted,  that 
the  children  of  Job  had  only  received  the  reward  due  to  their  offen- 
ces ;  and  with  regard  to  himself,  intimates,  that  if  he  be  innocent, 
and  will  apply  with  proper  humility  to  the  divine  mercy,  he  may  be 
restored.  The  third  upbraids  him  with  arrogance,  with  vanity,  and 
even  with  falsehood,  because  he  has  presumed  to  defend  himself 
against  the  unjust  accusations  of  his  companions  ;  and  exhorts  him 
to  a  sounder  mode  of  reasoning  and  a  more  holy  life.  They  all, 
with  a  manifest,  though  indirect  allusion  to  Job,  discourse  very  co- 
piously concerning  the  divine  judgements  which  are  always  openly 
displayed  against  the  wicked,  and  of  the  certain  destruction  of  hy- 
pocritical pretenders  to  virtue  and  religion.  In  reply  to  this,  Job 
enumerates  his  sufferings,  and  complains  bitterly  of  the  inhumanity 
of  his  friends,  and  of  the  severity  which  he  has  experienced  from 
the  hand  of  God  ;  he  calls  to  witness  both  God  and  man,  that  he  is 
unjustly  oppressed ;  he  intimates,  that  he  is  weak  in  comparison 

6  JOB  i.  22.  ii.  10. 


268  THE  fOEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XX  XII, 

with  God,  that  the  contention  is  consequently  unequal,  and  that  be 
his  cause  ever  so  righteous  he  cannot  hope  to  prevail.  He  expostu- 
lates with  God  himself  still  more  vehemently,  and  with  greater  free- 
dom, affirming,  that  he  does  not  discriminate  characters,  but  equal- 
ly afflicts  the  just  and  the  unjust.  The  expostulations  of  Job  serve 
only  to  irritate  still  more  the  resentment  of  his  pretended  friends ; 
they  reproach  him  in  severer  terms  with  pride,  impiety,  passion,  and 
madness  ;  they  repeat  the  same  arguments  respecting  the  justice  of 
God,  the  punishment  of  the  wicked,  and  their  certain  destruction 
after  a  short  period  of  apparent  prosperity.  This  sentiment  they 
confidently  pronounced  to  be  confirmed  both  by  their  experience 
and  by  that  of  their  fa.thers ;  and  they  maliciously  exaggerate  the 
ungrateful  topic  by  the  most  splendid  imagery  and  the  most  forcible 
language.  On  the  part  of  Job,  the  general  scope  of  the  argument 
is  much  the  same  as  before,  but  the  expression  is  considerably 
heightened  ;  it  consists  of  appeals  to  the  Almighty,  asseverations  of 
his  own  innocence,  earnest  expostulations,  complaints  of  the  cruelty 
of  his  friends,  melancholy  reflections  on  the  vanity  of  human  life, 
and  upon  his  own  severe  misfortunes,  ending  in  grief  and  despera- 
tion :  he  affirms,  however,  that  he  places  his  ultimate  hope  and  con- 
fidence in  God  ;  and  the  more  vehemently  his  adversaries  urge,  that 
the  wicked  only  are  objects  of  the  divine  wrath,  and  obnoxious  to 
punishment,  so  much  the  more  resolutely  does  Job  assert  their  per- 
petual impunity,  prosperity,  and  happiness,  even  to  the  end  of  their 
existence.  The  first  of  his  opponents,  Eliphaz,  incensed  by  this  as- 
sertion, descends  directly  to  open  crimination  and  contumely  ;  he 
accuses  the  most  upright  of  men  of  the  most  atrocious  crimes,  of  in- 
justice, rapine,  and  oppression  ;  inveighs  against  him  as  an  impious 
pretender  to  virtue  and  religion,  and  with  a  kind  of  sarcastic  benev- 
olence exhorts  him  to  penitence.  Vehemently  affected  with  this  re- 
proof, Job,  in  a  still  more  animated  and  confident  strain,  appeals  to 
the  tribunal  of  all-seeing  Justice  ;  and  wishes  it  were  only  permit- 
ted him  to  plead  his  cause  in  the  presence  of  God  himself.  He 
complains  still  more  intemperately  of  the  unequal  treatment  of  Pro- 
vidence ;  exults  in  his  own  integrity,  and  then  more  tenaciously 
maintains  his  former  opinion  concerning  the  impunity  of  the  wicked. 
To  this  another  of  the  triumvirate,  Bildad,  replies,  by  a  masterly, 
though  concise  dissertation  on  the  majesty  and  sanctity  of  the  Di- 
vine Being,  indirectly  rebuking  the  presumption  of  Job,  who  has 
dared  to  question  his  decrees.  In  reply  to  Bildad,  Job  demonstrates 


LECT.  XXXII.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  269 

himself  no  less  expert  at  wielding  the  weapons  of  satire  and  ridicule, 
than  those  of  reason  and  argument ;  and  reverting  to  a  more  seri- 
ous tone,  he  displays  the  infinite  power  and  wisdom  of  God  more 
copiously,  and  more  poetically  than  the  former  speaker.  '  The  third 
of  the  friends  making  no  return,  and  the  others  remaining  silent, 
Job  at  length  opens  the  true  sentiments  of  his  heart  concerning  the 
fate  of  the  wicked  ;  he  allows  that  their  prosperity  is  unstable,  and 
that  they  and  their  descendants  shall  at  last  experience  on  a  sudden, 
that  God  is  the  avenger  of  iniquity.  In  all  this,  however,  he  con- 
tends that  the  divine  counsels  do  not  admit  of  human  investigation ; 
but  that  the  chief  wisdom  of  man  consists  in  the  fear  of  God.  He 
beautifully  descants  upon  his  former  prosperity ;  and  exhibits  a 
striking  contrast  between  it  and  his  present  affliction  and  debase- 
ment. Lastly,  in  answer  to  the  crimination  of  Eliphaz  and  the  im- 
plications of  the  others,  he  relates  the  principal  transactions  of  his 
past  life  ;  he  asserts  his  integrity  as  displayed  in  all  the  duties  of 
life,  and  in  the  sight  of  God  and  man  ;  and  again  appeals  to  the 
justice  and  omniscience  of  God  in  attestation  of  his  veracity. 

If  these  circumstances  be  fairly  collected  from  the  general  ten- 
our  and  series  of  the  work,  as  far  as  we  are  able  to  trace  them 
through  the  plainer  and  more  conspicuous  passages,  it  will  be  no 
very  difficult  task  to  explain  and  define  the  subject  of  this  part  of 
the  poem,  which  contains  the  dispute  between  Job  and  his  friends. 
The  argument  seems  chiefly  to  relate  to  the  piety  and  integrity  of 
Job,  and  turns  upon  this  point,  whether  he,  who  by  the  divine  pro- 
vidence and  visitation  is  so  severely  punished  and  afflicted,  ought  to 
be  accounted  pious  and  innocent.  This  leads  into  a  more  exten- 
sive field  of  controversy,  into  a  dispute  indeed,  which  less  admits  of 
any  definition  or  limit,  concerning  the  nature  of  the  divine  coun- 
sels, in  the  dispensations  of  happiness  and  misery  in  this  life.  The 
antagonists  of  Job  in  this  dispute  observing  him  exposed  to  such 
severe  visitations,  conceiving  that  this  affliction  has  not  fallen  upon 
him  unmeritedly,  accuse  him  of  hypocrisy,  and  falsely  ascribe  to 
him  the  guilt  of  some  atrocious  but  concealed  offence.  Job,  on  the 
contrary,  conscious  of  no  crime,  and  wounded  by  their  unjust  sus- 
picions, defends  his  own  innocence  before  God  with  rather  more 
confidence  and  ardour  than  is  commendable  ;  and  so  strenuously 
contends  for  his  own  integrity,  that  he  seems  virtually  to  charge 
God  himself  with  some  degree  of  injustice. 

This  state  of  the  controversy  is  clearly  explained  by  what  fol- 


270  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XXXII. 

lows  :  for  when  the  three  friends  have  ceased  to  dispute  with  Job, 
"  because  he  seemeth  just  in  his  own  eyes,"7  that  is,  because  he  has 
uniformly  contended,  that  there  was  no  wickedness  in  himself  which 
could  call  down  the  heavy  vengeance  of  God  ;  Elihu  comes  forward 
justly  offended  with  both  parties  ;  with  Job,  because  "  he  justified 
himself  in  preference  to  God,"8  that  is,  because  he  defended  so  ve- 
hemently the  justice  of  his  own  cause,  that  he  seemed  in  some  meas- 
ure to  arraign  the  justice  of  God  ;  against  the  three  friends,  because, 
"  though  they  were  unable  to  answer  Job,  they  ceased  not  to  con- 
demn him  :"9  that  is,  they  concluded  in  their  own  minds,  that  Job 
was  impious  and  wicked,  while,  nevertheless,  they  had  nothing  spe- 
cific to  object  against  his  assertions  of  his  own  innocence,  or  upon 
which  they  might  safely  ground  their  accusation. 

The  conduct  of  Elihu  evidently  corresponds  with  this  state  of  the 
controversy  :  he  professes,  after  a  slight  prefatory  mention  of  him- 
self, to  reason  with  Job,  unbiassed  equally  by  favour  or  resentment. 
He  therefore  reproves  Job  from  his  own  mouth,  because  he  had  at- 
tributed too  much  to  himself;  because  he  had  affirmed  himself  to 
be  altogether  free  from  guilt  and  depravity ;  because  he  had  presum- 
ed to  contend  with  God,  and  had  not  scrupled  to  insinuate,  that  the 
Deity  was  hostile  to  him.  He  asserts,  that  it  is  not  necessary  for 
God  to  explain  and  develope  his  counsels  to  men  ;  that  he  neverthe- 
less takes  many  occasions  of  admonishing  them,  not  only  by  visions 
and  revelations,  but  even  by  the  visitations  of  his  providence,  by 
sending  calamities  and  diseases  upon  them,  to  repress  their  arro- 
gance and  reform  their  obduracy.  He  next  rebukes  Job,  because 
he  had  pronounced  himself  upright,  and  affirmed  that  God  had  acted 
inimically,  if  not  unjustly  towards  him,  which  he  proves  to  be  no  less 
improper  than  indecent.  In  the  third  place,  he  objects  to  Job,  that 
from  the  miseries  of  the  good,  and  prosperity  of  the  wicked,  he  has 
falsely  and  perversely  concluded,  that  there  was  no  advantage  to  be 
derived  from  the  practice  of  virtue.  On  the  contrary  he  affirms, 
that  when  the  afflictions  of  the  just  continue,  it  is  because  they  do 
not  place  a  proper  confidence  in  God,  ask  relief  at  his  hands,  pa- 
tiently expect  it,  nor  demean  themselves  before  him  with  becoming 
humility  and  submission.  This  observation  alone,  he  adds  very 
properly,  is  at  once  a  sufficient  reproof  of  the  contumacy  of  Job,  and 
a  full  refutation  of  the  unjust  suspicions  of  his  friends.10  Lastly,  he 

7  Chap,  xxxii.  1.  6  Chap,  xxxii.  2.     Compare  xxxv.  2.  xl.  8. 

9  Chap,  xxxiii.  3.  10  Chap.  xxxv.  4. 


LECT.  XXXII.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  271 

explains  the  purposes  of  the  Deity  in  chastening  men,  which  are  in 
general  to  prove  and  to  amend  them,  to  repress  their  arrogance,  to 
afford  him  an  opportunity  of  exemplifying  his  justice  upon  the  obsti- 
nate and  rebellious,  and  of  shewing  favour  to  the  humble  and  obe- 
dient. He  supposes  God  to  have  acted  in  this  manner  towards  Job  ; 
on  that  account  he  exhorts  him  to  humble  himself  before  his  right- 
eous Judge,  to  beware  of  appearing  obstinate  or  contumacious  in  his 
sight,  and  of  relapsing  into  a  repetition  of  his  sin.  He  intreats  him, 
from  the  contemplation  of  the  divine  power  and  majesty,  to  endeav- 
our to  retain  a  proper  reverence  for  the  Almighty.  To  these  fre- 
quently intermitted  and  often  repeated  admonitions  of  Elihu,  Job 
makes  no  return. 

The  oration  of  God  himself  follows  that  of  Elihu,  in  which,  dis- 
daining to  descend  to  any  particular  explication  of  his  divine  coun- 
sels, but  instancing  some  of  the  stupendous  effects  of  his  infinite 
power,  he  insists  upon  the  same  topics  which  Elihu  had  before  touch- 
ed upon.  In  the  first  place,  having  reproved  the  temerity  of  Job,  he 
convicts  him  of  ignorance,  in  being  unable  to  comprehend  the  works 
of  his  creation,  which  were  obvious  to  every  eye ;  the  nature  and 
structure  of  the  earth,  the  sea,  the  light,  and  the  animal  kingdom. 
He  then  demonstrates  his  we  akness,  by  challenging  him  to  prove  his 
own  power  by  emulating  any  single  exertion  of  the  divine  energy, 
and  then  referring  him  to  one  or  two  of  the  brute  creation,  with 
which  he  is  unable  to  contend — how  much  less  therefore  with  the 
omnipotent  Creator  and  Lord  of  all  things,  who  is  or  can  be  accoun- 
table to  no  being  whatever  ?n  On  this  Job  humbly  submits  to  the. 
will  of  Providence,  acknowledges  his  own  ignorance  and  imbecility, 
and  "  repents  in  dust  and  ashes." 

On  a  due  consideration  of  all  these  circumstances,  the  principal 
object  of  the  poem  seems  to  be  this  third  and  last  trial  of  Job,  from 
the  injustice  and  unkindness  of  his  accusing  friends.  The  conse- 
quence of  which  is,  in  the  first  place,  the  anger,  indignation,  and 
contumacy  of  Job,  and  afterwards  his  composure,  submission,  and 
penitence.  The  design  of  the  poem  is,  therefore,  to  teach  men,  that 
having  a  due  respect  to  the  corruption,  infirmity,  and  ignorance  of 
human  nature,  as  well  as  to  the  infinite  wisdom  and  majesty  of  God, 
they  are  to  reject  all  confidence  in  their  own  strength,  in  their  own 
righteousness,  and  to  preserve  on  all  occasions  an  unwavering  and 

11  See  Chap.  xli.  2,  8. 


272  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XXXII. 

unsullied  faith,  and  to  submit  with  becoming  reverence  to  his  de- 
crees. 

I  would  wish  it,  however,  to  be  carefully  observed,  that  the  sub- 
ject of  the  dispute  between  Job  and  his  friends  differs  from  the  sub- 
ject of  the  poem  in  general  :  that  the  end  of  the  poetical  part  is  dif- 
ferent from  the  design  of  the  narrative  at  large.  For  although  the 
design  and  subject  of  the  poem  be  exactly  as  I  have  denned  them,  it 
may  nevertheless  be  granted,  that  the  whole  history,  taken  together, 
contains  an  example  of  patience,  together  with  its  reward.  This 
point  not  having  been  treated  with  sufficient  distinctness  by  the 
learned,  I  cannot  help  esteeming  it  the  principal  cause  of  the  per- 
plexity in  which  the  subject  has  been  involved. (c) 

I  am  not  ignorant,  that  to  those  who  enter  upon  this  inquiry,  some 
questions  will  occur,  which  appear  to  require  a  separate  examination; 
since  many  of  them,  however,  are  chiefly  connected  with  those  pas- 
sages which  are  acknowledged  to  be  obscure,  which  have  not  yet  been 
clearly  explained,  and  which,  whatever  they  may  hereafter  be  found 
to  import,  are  not  likely  to  affect  the  truth  of  our  conclusion,  I  have 
thought  proper  to  omit  them.  Nor  will  I  allow,  that  because  many 
things  yet  remain  ambiguous  and  perplexed,  we  are  therefore  to 
doubt  of  those  which  are  more  open  and  evident.  In  regard  to  cer- 
tain more  important  doctrines,  which  some  persons  of  distinguished 
learning  have  thought  to  be  established  by  this  extraordinary  monu- 
ment of  ancient  wisdom,  as  they  either  depend  in  a  great  degree  on 
the  obscure  passages  above-mentioned,  or  do  not  seem  to  contribute 
in  the  least  to  the  main  design  of  the  poem,  nor  to  be  consistent  with 
the  object  of  it,  which  I  just  now  pointed  out,  1  thought  it  still  more 
unnecessary  to  introduce  them  in  this  disquisition.  What  I  have 
advanced,  I  conceived  fully  adequate  to  the  purpose  of  this  under- 
taking, and  a  sufficient  introduction  to  a  critical  examination  of  the 
composition  and  beauties  of  the  poem. 


LECTURE  XXXIII. 


THE    POEM    OF    JOB    NOT    A    PERFECT    DRAMA. 

The  poem  of  Job  commonly  accounted  dramatic ;  and  thought  by  many  to  be  of  the  same  kind 
with  the  Greek  tragedy  :  this  opinion  examined. — A  plot  or  fable  essential  to  a  regular  dra- 
ma ;  its  definition  and  essential  qualities  according  to  Aristotle — Demonstrated,  that  the 
poem  of  Job  does  not  contain  any  plot :  its  form  and  design  more  fully  explained — Compared 
with  the  Oedipus  Tyrannus  of  Sophocles  ;  with  the  Oedipus  Coloneus  ;  and  shewn  to  differ 
entirely  from  both  in  form  and  manner — ft  is  nevertheless  a  most  beautiful  and  perfect  per- 
formance in  its  kind  :  it  approaches  very  near  the  form  of  a  perfect  drama  ;  and,  for  regular- 
ity in  form  and  arrangement,  justly  claims  the  first  place  among  the  poetical  compositions  of 
the  Hebrews. 

WHEN  I  undertook  the  present  investigation,  my  principal  ob- 
ject was  to  enable  you  to  form  some  definite  opinion  concerning  the 
poem  of  Job,  and  to  assign  it  its  proper  place  among  the  composi- 
tions of  the  Hebrew  poets.  This  will  possibly  appear  to  some  a  su- 
perfluous and  idle  undertaking,  as  the  point  seems  long  since  to 
have  been  finally  determined,  the  majority  of  the  critics  having  de- 
cidedly adjudged  it  to  belong  to  the  dramatic  class.  Since,  howev- 
er, the  term  dramatic,  as  I  formerly  had  reason  to  remark,  is  in  it- 
self extremely  ambiguous,  the  present  disquisition  will  not  be  confin- 
ed within  the  limits  of  a  single  question  ;  for  the  first  object  of  in- 
quiry will  necessarily  be,  what  idea  is  affixed  to  the  appellation  by 
those  critics  who  term  the  book  of  Job  a  dramatic  poem  :  and  after 
we  have  determined  this  point  (if  it  be  possible  to  determine  it,  for 
they  do  not  seem  willing  to  be  explicit)  we  may  then  with  safety 
proceed  to  inquire  whether,  pursuant  to  that  idea,  the  piece  may  be 
justly  entitled  to  this  appellation. 

A  poem  is  called  dramatic,  either  in  consequence  of  its  formr 
the  form  I  mean  of  a  perfect  dialogue,  which  is  sustained  entirely  by 
the  characters  or  personages  without  the  intervention  of  the  poet ; 
and  this  was  the  definition  adopted  by  the  ancient  critics  :  or  else, 
according  to  the  more  modern  acceptation  of  the  word,  in  conse- 
quence of  a  plot  or  fable  being  represented  in  it.  If  those  who  ac- 
count the  book  of  Job  dramatic,  adhere  to  the  former  definition,  I 
have  little  inclination  to  litigate  the  point ;  and  indeed  the  object  of 
35 


274  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  LfiCT.  XXXIII. 


the  controversy  would  scarcely  be  worth  the  labour.  Though  a 
critic,  if  disposed  to  be  scrupulously  exact,  might  insist  that  the 
work,  upon  the  whole,  is  by  no  means  a  perfect  dialogue,  but  con- 
sists of  a  mixture  of  the  narrative  and  colloquial  style  :  for  the  histo- 
rical part,  which  is  all  composed  in  the  person  of  the  writer  himself, 
is  certainly  to  be  accounted  a  part  of  the  work  itself,  considered  as 
a  whole.  Since,  however,  on  the  other  hand,  the  historical  or  nar- 
rative part  is  all  evidently  written  in  prose,  and  seems  to  me  to  be 
substituted  merely  in  the  place  of  an  argument  or  comment,  for  the 
purpose  of  explaining  the  rest,  and  certainly  does  not  constitute  any 
part  of  the  poem  ,  since,  moreover,  those  short  sentences,  which 
serve  to  introduce  the  different  speeches,  contain  very  little  more 
than  the  names ;  I  am  willing  to  allow,  that  the  structure  or  form  of 
this  poem  is  on  the  whole  dramatic.  But  this  concession  will,  I  fear, 
scarcely  satisfy  the  critics  in  question  ;  for  they  speak  of  the  regular 
order  and  conduct  of  the  piece,  and  of  the  dramatic  catastrophe ; 
they  assert,  that  the  interposition  of  the  Deity  is  a  necessary  part  of 
the  machinery  of  the  fable  ;  th«y  even  enumerate  the  acts  and 
scenes,  and  use  the  very  same  language  in  all  respects,  as  if  they 
spoke  of  a  Greek  tragedy  ;  insomuch,  that  when  they  term  the  poem 
of  Job  dramatic,  they  seem  to  speak  of  that  species  of  drama  which 
was  cultivated  and  improved  in  the  theatre  of  Athens.1  It  appears, 
therefore,  a  fair  object  of  inquiry,  whether  the  poem  of  Job  be  pos- 
sessed of  the  peculiar  properties  of  the  Greek  drama,  and  may  with 
reason  and  justice  be  classed  with  the  theatrical  productions  of  that 
people. 

We  have  already  agreed,  that  the  greater  and  more  perfect  dra- 
ma is  peculiarly  distinguished  from  the  less  and  more  common  spe- 
cies, inasmuch  as  it  retains  not  only  the  dramatic  form,  or  the  per- 
fect dialogue,  but  also  exhibits  some  entire  action,  fable,  or  plot. 
And  this  is  perfectly  agreeable  to  the  definition  of  Aristotle  ;  for  al- 
though he  points  out  many  parts  or  constituents  in  the  composition 
of  a  tragedy,  he  assigns  the  first  place  to  the  plot  or  fable.2  This 
he  says  is  the  beginning,  this  the  end,  this  is  the  most  important 
part,  the  very  soul  of  a  tragedy,  without  which  it  is  utterly  undeserv- 
ing of  the  name,  and  indeed  cannot  properly  be  said  to  exist.  A 
plot  or  fable  is  the  representation  of  an  action  or  event,  or  of  a  series 

1  See  CALMET,  Preface  sur  Job.     HARE,  Not.  ad  Ps.  cvii.  40.     CARPZOVII 
Intro'duct.  in  Libros  Biblicos,  part  ii.  p.  76. 

2  ARIST.  Poet.  cap.  vi. 


LECT.  XXXIII.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  275 

of  events  or  incidents  tending  all  to  one  point,  which  are  detailed 
with  a  view  to  a  particular  object  or  conclusion.  A  tragedy,  says 
the  same  author,  is  not  a  representation  of  men,  but  of  actions,  a 
picture  of  life,  of  prosperity,  and  adversity  :  in  other  words,  the 
business  of  the  poem  is  not  merely  to  exhibit  manners  only,  nor  does 
the  most  perfect  representation  of  manners  constitute  a  tragedy ;  for 
in  reality  a  tragedy  may  exist  with  little  or  no  display  of  manners  or 
character  ;  its  business  is  to  exhibit  life  and  action,  or  some  regular 
train  of  actions  and  events,  on  which  depends  the  felicity  or  infelici- 
ty of  the  persons  concerned.  For  human  happiness  or  prosperity 
consists  in  action ;  and  action  is  not  a  quality,  but  is  the  end  of  man. 
According  to  our  manners  we  are  denominated  good  or  bad,  but  we 
are  happy  or  unhappy,  prosperous  or  unsuccessful,  according  to  ac- 
tions or  events.  Poets  therefore  do  not  form  a  plot  or  action  merely 
for  the  sake  of  imitating  manners  or  character  ;  but  manners  and 
character  are  added  to  the  plot,  and  for  the  sake  of  it  are  chiefly  at- 
tended to.  Thus  far  he  has  accurately  drawn  the  line  between  the 
representation  of  action  and  manners.  He  adds,  moreover,  that  uni- 
ty is  essential  to  a  regular  plot  or  action,  and  that  it  must  be  com- 
plete in  itself,  and  of  a  proper  length.3  But  to  comprehend  more 
perfectly  the  nature  of  a  plot  or  fable,  it  must  be  observed,  that  there 
are  two  principal  species  :  for  they  are  either  complex  or  simple  ;4 
the  former  contains  some  unexpected  vicissitude  of  fortune,  such  as 
the  recognition  of  a  person  at  first  unknown,  the  recovery  of  a  lost 
child,  or  a  sudden  change  in  the  situation  of  the  parties,  or  perhaps 
both ;  the  latter  contains  nothing  of  the  kind,  but  proceeds  in  one 
uniform  and  equal  tenour.  In  every  plot  or  fable,  however,  be  it 
ever  so  simple,  and  though  it  contain  nothing  of  the  wonderful  or 
unexpected,  there  is  always  a  perplexity  or  embarrassment,  as  also  a 
regular  solution  or  catastrophe  ;5  the  latter  must  proceed  from  the 
former,  and  indeed  must  depend  upon  it ;  which  cannot  be  the  case, 
unless  there  be  a  certain  order  or  connexion  in  the  incidents  and 
events  which  inclines  them  towards  the  same  end,  and  combines 
them  all  in  one  termination. 

On  fairly  considering  these  circumstances,  I  have  no  hesitation 
in  affirming,  that  the  poem  of  Job  contains  no  plot  or  action  whatev- 
er, not  even  of  the  most  simple  kind  ;  it  uniformly  exhibits  one  con- 
stant state  of  things,  not  the  smallest  change  of  fortune  taking 

3  A.-  T.  Poet.  ch.  vii.          4  ARIST.  Poet.  ch.  x.          5  ARIST.  ch.  xviii. 


276  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  LECT.  XXXIII. 


place  from  the  beginning  to  the  end  ;  and  it  contains  merely  a  rep- 
resentation of  those  manners,  passions  and  sentiments,  which  might 
actually  be  expected  in  such  a  situation.  Job  is  represented  as  re- 
duced from  the  summit  of  human  prosperity,  to  a  condition  the  most 
miserable  and  afflicted  :  and  the  sentiments  of  both  Job  and  his 
friends  are  exactly  such  as  the  occasion  dictates.  For  here  a  new 
temptation  falls  upon  him,  by  which  the  constancy  of  Job  is  put  to 
the  severest  trial ;  and  this  circumstance  it  is  that  constitutes  the 
principal  subject  of  the  poem.  Job  had,  we  find,  endured  the  most 
grievous  calamities,  the  loss  of  his  wealth,  the  deprivation  of  his 
children,  and  the  miserable  union  of  poverty  and  disease,  with  so 
much  fortitude,  and  with  so  just  a  confidence  in  his  own  integrity, 
that  nothing  could  be  extorted  from  him  in  the  least  inconsistent 
with  the  strictest  reverence  for  the  Divine  Being  ;  he  is  now  put  to 
the  proof,  whether,  after  enduring  all  this  with  firmness  and  resigna- 
tion, he  can  with  equal  patience  endure  to  have  his  innocence  and 
virtue  (in  which  perhaps  he  had  placed  too  much  confidence)  indi- 
rectly questioned,  and  even  in  plain  terms  arraigned.  Job,  now 
sinking  under  the  weight  of  his  misery,  laments  his  condition  with 
more  vehemence  than  before.  His  friends  reprove  his  impatience, 
and  drop  some  dark  insinuations  to  the  apparent  disparagement  of 
his  virtue  and  integrity,  by  entering  into  very  copious  declamations 
concerning  the  justice  of  God  in  proportioning  his  visitations  to  the 
crimes  of  men.  Job  is  still  more  violently  agitated  ;  and  his  friends 
accuse  him  with  less  reserve.  He  appeals  to  God,  and  expostulates 
with  some  degree  of  freedom.  They  urge  and  press  him  in  the  very 
heat  of  his  passion  ;  and,  by  still  more  malignant  accusations,  excite 
his  indignation  and  his  confidence,  which  were  already  too  vehe- 
ment. Elihu  interposes  as  an  arbiter  of  the  controversy ;  he  re- 
proves the  severe  spirit  of  the  friends,  as  well  as  the  presumption  of 
Job,  who  trusted  too  much  in  his  own  righteousness.  Job  receives 
his  admonitions  with  mildness  and  temper,  and  being  rendered  more 
sedate  by  his  expostulation,  makes  no  reply,  though  the  other  ap- 
pears frequently  to  expect  it.  When  the  Almighty,  however,  con- 
descends to  set  before  him  his  rashness,  frailty,  and  ignorance,  he 
submits  in  perfect  humility,  and  with  sincere  repentance.  Jlere  the 
temptation  of  Job  concludes,  in  the  course  of  which  there  was  great 
reason  to  apprehend  he  would  be  totally  vanquished  :  at  the  same 
time  the  poem  necessarily  terminates,  the  state  of  things  still  remain- 
ing without  any  change  or  vicissitude  whatever.  The  poem  indeed 


LECT.  XXXIII.  THE  POEM  OP  JOB.  277 


contains  a  great  variety  of  sentiment,  excellent  representations  of 
manners  and  character,  remarkable  efforts  of  passion,  much  impor- 
tant controversy  ;  but  no  change  of  fortune,  no  novelty  of  incident, 
no  plot,  no  action. 

If  indeed  we  rightly  consider,  we  shall,  I  dare  believe,  find  that 
the  very  nature  of  the  subject  excludes  even  the  possibility  of  a  plot 
or  action.  From  that  state  of  settled  and  unvarying  misery  in  which 
Job  is  involved,  arises  the  doubt  of  his  integrity,  and  those  insinua- 
tions and  criminations  which  serve  to  exasperate  him,  and  by  which 
he  is  stimulated  to  expostulate  with  God,  and  to  glory  in  his  own 
righteousness.  It  was  proper,  therefore,  that,  by  a  continuance  of 
the  same  state  and  condition,  he  should  be  recalled  to  an  humble 
spirit,  and  to  a  proper  reverence  for  the  Almighty  Providence.  For 
it  would  have  been  altogether  contrary  to  what  is  called  poetical 
justice,  if  he  had  been  restored  to  prosperity  previous  to  his  submis- 
sion and  penitence.  The  repentance  of  Job,  however,  we  find  con- 
cludes the  poem.  Nor  was  it  at  all  necessary,  that  the  question  con- 
cerning the  divine  justice  should  be  resolved  in  the  body  of  the 
work,  either  by  the  fortunate  issue  of  the  affairs  of  Job,  or  even  by 
the  explication  of  the  divine  intentions  :  this,  in  fact,  was  not  the 
primary  object,  nor  does  it  at  all  constitute  the  subject  of  the  poem  ; 
but  is  subservient,  or  in  a  manner  an  appendage  to  it.  The  dispu- 
tation which  takes  place  upon  this  topic,  is  no  more  than  an  instru- 
ment qf  temptation,  and  is  introduced  in  order  to  explain  the  inmost 
sentiments  of  Job,  and  to  lay  open  the  latent  pride  that  existed  in 
his  soul.  The  Almighty,  therefore,  when  he  addresses  Job,  pays 
little  regard  to  this  point ;  nor  indeed  was  it  necessary,  for  neither 
the  nature  nor  the  object  of  the  poem  required  a  defence  of  the  Di- 
vine Providence,  but  merely  a  reprehension  of  the  over-confidence 
of  Job. 

If  indeed  we  suppose  any  change  to  have  taken  place  in  the  state 
of  affairs,  the  nature  and  subject  of  the  poem  will  also  be  changed. 
If  we  connect  with  the  poetical  part  either  the  former  or  the  latter 
part  of  the  history,  or  both,  the  subject  will  then  be  the  display  of  a 
perfect  example  of  patience  in  enduring  the  severest  outward  calam- 
ities, and  at  length  receiving  an  ample  reward  at  the  hands  of  the 
Almighty  :  from  this,  however,  the  universal  tenour  of  the  poem  will 
be  found  greatly  to  differ.  It  will  be  found  to  exhibit  rather  the  im- 
patience of  Job  in  bearing  the  reproaches  and  abuse  of  his  pretend- 
ed friends  :  and  this  appears  to  lead  to  the  true  object  of  the  poem  : 


278  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XXXIII. 


for  Job  is  irritated,  he  indulges  his  passion,  he  speaks  too  confident- 
ly of  his  own  righteousness,  and  in  too  ir  reverend  a  style  concern- 
ing the  justice  of  God  ;  in  the  end  he  is  converted  by  the  admoni- 
tions of  Elihu,  and  the  reproofs  of  his  omnipotent  Creator.  The 
true  object  of  the  poem  appears  therefore  to  be,  to  demonstrate  the 
necessity  of  humility,  of  trust  in  God,  and  of  the  profoundest  rever- 
ence for  the  divine  decrees,  even  in  the  holiest  and  most  exalted 
characters. 

Should  it  be  objected,  that  I  have  contended  with  a  scrupulous 
perverseness  concerning  the  meaning  of  a  word  ;  and  should  it  after 
all  be  affirmed,  that  this  very  temptation  of  Job,  this  dispute  itself 
possesses  in  some  degree  the  form  or  appearance  of  an  action  :  I 
am  content  to  submit  the  trial  to  another  issue,  and  to  be  judged  by 
fair  investigation  of  the  practice  of  the  Greek  poets  upon  similar  oc- 
casions. There  is  no  necessity  to  remind  this  assembly,  with  how 
much  art  and  design  the  fable  or  plot  of  the  Oedipus  Tyrannus  of 
Sophocles  appears  to  have  been  constructed  ;  with  what  powers  of 
imagination  and  judgement  the  process  of  the  drama  is  conducted  ; 
and  in  what  manner,  by  a  regular  succession  of  events,  arising  nat- 
urally from  each  other,  the  horrid  secret  is  developed,  which  as  soon 
as  disclosed  precipitates  the  hero  of  the  tragedy  from  the  summit  of 
human  happiness  into  the  lowest  depths  of  misery  and  ruin.  Let 
us  only  suppose  Sophocles  to  have  treated  the  same  subject  in  a  dif- 
ferent manner,  and  to  have  formed  a  poem  on  that  part  of  the  story 
alone  which  is  comprised  in  the  last  act.  Here  Oedipus  would  be 
indeed  exhibited  as  an  object  of  the  most  tender  compassion  ;  here 
would  be  a  spacious  field  for  the  display  of  the  most  interesting  and 
tragical  affections  :  the  fatal  catastrophe  would  be  deplored  ;  the 
blindness,  disgrace,  exile  of  the  hero,  would  enhance  the  distress 
of  the  scene  ;  and  to  the  bitterness  of  present  calamity  would  be  ad- 
ded the  still  more  bitter  remembrance  of  the  past.  The  poet  might 
copiously  display  the  sorrow  and  commiseration  of  his  daughters, 
his  detestation  of  himself,  and  of  all  that  belong  to  him,  and  more 
copiously,  of  those  who  had  preserved  him  when  exposed,  who  had 
supported  and  educated  him  :  all  these  topics  the  poet  has  slightly 
touched  upon  in  these  lines  : 

'  lot  Ki&aiQ(~>v,  T'L  it*  tStjfOv  ;  ri  ^ 


The  succeeding  passages  are  also  extremely  pathetic.     These  would 
easily  admit  of  amplification,  and,  when  the  ardour  of  grief  was  a 


LECT.  XXXIII.  THE  POEM  OP  JOB.  279 


little  abated,  he  might  have  added  his  vindication  of  himself,  his  as- 
severations of  his  innocence,  his  plea  of  ignorance,  and  fatal  necessi- 
ty, and  his  impassioned  exclamations  against  fortune  and  the  gods. 
From  all  this  might  be  constructed  a  poem,  great,  splendid,  copious, 
diversified  ;  and  the  subject  would  also  furnish  a  topic  of  disputation 
not  unlike  that  of  Job.  It  might  also  assume,  in  some  measure,  the 
dramatic  form :  the  same  characters  that  appear  in  the  tragedy  might 
be  introduced  ;  it  might  possess  the  exact  proportions  and  all  the 
requisites  of  a  drama,  fable  alone  excepted,  which  indeed  constitutes 
the  very  essence  of  a  dramatic  poem,  and  without  which  all  other 
qualities  are  of  no  avail :  for  the  Greeks  would  have  called  such  a 
production  a  monody,  or  elegiac  dialogue,  or  any  thing  but  a  tragedy. 
This  opinion  receives  still  further  confirmation  from  the  exam- 
ple and  authority  of  Sophocles  himself  in  another  instance.  For 
when  he  again  introduces  the  same  Oedipus  upon  the  stage  in  an- 
other tragedy,  though  the  ground-work  of  the  piece  be  nearly  that 
which  we  have  been  describing,  the  conduct  of  it  is  totally  differ- 
ent. This  piece  is  called  Oedipus  Coloneus ;  the  plot  or  fable  is 
quite  simple,  on  which  account  it  is  a  fairer  object  of  comparison 
with  the  poem  of  Job  than  any,  the  plot  of  which  is  more  complex. 
Oedipus  is  introduced  blind,  exiled,  and  oppressed  with  misery  ; 
none  of  those  circumstances  above-mentioned  have  escaped  the  po- 
et ;  such  as  the  lamentation  of  his  misery,  the  passionate  exclama- 
tions against  fate  and  the  gods,  and  the  vindication  of  his  inno- 
cence. These,  however,  do  not  form  the  basis  of  the  poem  ;  they 
are  introduced  merely  as  circumstances,  which  afford  matter  of  am- 
plification, and  which  seem  to  flow  from  that  elegant  plot  or  action 
he  has  invented.  Oedipus,  led  by  his  daughter,  arrives  at  Colonus, 
there  to  die  and  be  interred  according  to  the  admonition  of  the  Ora- 
cle; for  upon  these  circumstances  the  victory  of  the  Athenians  over 
the  Thebans  was  made  to  depend.  The  place  being  accounted  sa- 
cred, the  Athenians  are  unwilling  to  receive  him  ;  but  Theseus  af- 
fords him  refuge  and  protection.  Another  of  his  daughters  is  intro- 
duced, who  informs  him  of  the  discord  between  her  brothers,  also 
that  Creon  is  coming,  with  an  intention  of  bringing  him  back  to  his 
own  country  in  pursuance  of  a  decree  of  the  Thebans.  After  this 
Creon  arrives  ;  he  endeavours  to  persuade  Oedipus  to  return  to  The- 
bes ;  and  on  his  refusal,  attempts  to  make  use  of  violence.  These- 
us protects  Oedipus :  and  in  the  mean  time  Polynices  arrives,  with 
a  view  of  bringing  over  his  father  to  his  party  in  the  war  against  the 


280  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XXXIII. 

Thebans  :  this  being  the  only  condition  on  which  he  was  to  hope 
for  victory.  Oedipus  refuses,  and  execrates  his  son  in  the  severest 
terms  :  in  conclusion,  the  answer  of  the  Oracle  being  communicat- 
ed to  Theseus,  Oedipus  dies,  and  is  secretly  buried  there.  In  this 
manner  is  constructed  a  regular,  perfect,  and  important  action  or 
plot ;  all  the  parts  of  which  are  connected  together  in  one  design, 
and  tend  exactly  to  the  same  conclusion,  and  in  which  are  involved 
the  fates  of  both  Thebes  and  Athens.  The  manners,  passions, 
cl  aracters,  and  sentiments,  serve  to  adorn,  but  not  to  support  the 
fable.  Without  any  striking  representation  of  these,  the  plot  or  ac- 
tion would  still  remain,  and  would  of  itself  sustain  the  tragedy  ;  but 
if  the  action  be  removed,  though  all  the  rest  remain,  it  is  evident 
that  the  tragedy  is  totally  annihilated. 

From  these  observations  it  will,  I  think,  be  evident,  that  the 
poem  of  Job  cannot  properly  be  brought  into  comparison  with  either 
Oedipus  of  Sophocles,  or  with  any  other  of  the  Greek  tragedies.  It 
will  be  evident,  I  think,  that  this  poem  ought  not  to  be  accounted 
of  the  same  kind  ;  nor  can  possibly  be  classed  with  them,  unless  the 
whole  nature  and  form  of  either  the  Greek  or  the  Hebrew  poem  be 
changed  ;  or  unless  the  plot  or  action  be  taken  from  the  one,  or  add- 
er to  the  other  :  for  without  this  great  essential  no  poem  can  indeed 
bt  accounted  a  perfect  drama. 

But  though  I  have  urged  thus  much  against  its  claim  to  that 
tHle,  let  it  not  be  understood  that  I  wish  to  derogate  from  its  merits. 
That  censure  will  rather  apply  to  those  who,  by  criticising  it  accord- 
ing to  foreign  and  improper  rules,  would  make  that  composition  ap- 
pear lame  and  imperfect,  which  on  the  contrary  is  in  its  kind  most 
beautiful  and  perfect.  If  indeed  the  extreme  antiquity  of  this  poem, 
the  obscurity  and  the  difficulty  that  necessarily  ensue  from  that  cir- 
cumstance be  considered  ;  and  if  allowance  be  made  for  the  total 
want  of  plot  and  action,  we  shall  have  cause  to  wonder  at  the  ele- 
gance and  interest  which  we  find  in  its  form,  conduct,  and  econo- 
my. The  arrangement, is  perfectly  regular,  and  every  part  is  admi- 
rably adapted  to  its  end  and  design.  The  antiquary  or  the  critic, 
who  has  been  at  the  pains  to  trace  the  history  of  the  Grecian  drama 
from  its  first  weak  and  imperfect  efforts,  and  has  carefully  observed 
its  tardy  progress  to  perfection,  will  scarcely,  I  think,  without  as- 
tonishment, contemplate  a  poem  produced  so  many  ages  before,  so 
elegant  in  its  design,  so  regular  in  its  structure,  so  animated,  so  af- 
fecting, so  near  to  the  true  dramatic  model :  while,  on  the  contra- 


LECT.  XXXIII.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  281 


ry,  the  united  wisdom  of  Greece,  after  ages  of  study,  was  not  able 
to  produce  any  thing  approaching  to  perfection  in  this  walk  of  poe- 
try before  the  time  of  JEschylus.  But  however  this  may  be — what- 
ever rank  may  be  assigned  to  Job,  in  a  comparison  with  the  poets  of 
Greece,  to  whom  we  must  at  least  allow  the  merit  of  art  and  meth- 
od ;  amongst  the  Hebrews,  it  must  certainly  be  allowed,  in  this  re- 
spect, to  be  unrivalled.  It  is  of  little  consequence  whether  it  be 
esteemed  a  didactic  or  an  ethic,  a  pathetic  or  dramatic  poem  ;  only 
let  it  be  assigned  a  distinct  and  conspicuous  station  in  the  highest 
rank  of  the  Hebrew  poetry. (A) 


LECTURE  XXXIV. 

OP  THE  MANNERS,  SENTIMENTS,  AND  STYLE  OF  THE  POEM 

OF  JOB.  ., 

Though  the  poem  of  Job  do  not  contain  a  plot  or  fable,  it  possesses,  nevertheless,  some  things 
in  common  with  the  perfect  drama — Manners  or  character — The  manners  of  Job  ;  to  be  dis- 
tinguished from  the  passions  or  emotions — The  opinion  of  Aristotle,  that  the  character  of  ex- 
treme virtue  is  not  proper  for  tragedy,  demonstrated  to  be  neither  applicable  to  Job,  nor 
true  with  respect  to  tragedy  in  general — The  design  of  the  poem — The  manners  of  the  three 
friends:  the  gradations  of  passion  more  strongly  marked  in  them  than  the  diversity  of  man- 
ners— Elihu — The  expostulation  of  God  himself— Sentiments  ;  expressive  of  things  and  of 
manners ;  the  latter  already  noticed ;  the  former  consist  partly  of  passion,  partly  of  des- 
cription: two  examples  of  the  softer  passions  :  examples  of  description — The  style  of  this 
poem  uncommonly  elegant  and  sublime;  and  the  poetic  conformation  of  the  sentences  ex- 
tremely correct — Peroration,  recommending  the  study  of  Hebrew  literature. 

WHEN  I  contended  that  the  poem  of  Job  ought  not  to  be  account- 
ed a  true  and  regular  drama,  such  as  are  the  tragedies  of  the 
Greeks,  I  was  far  from  insinuating,  that  it  did  not  possess  the  dra- 
matic form.  I  not  only  allowed/ that  in  its  general  conduct  and 
economy  it  exhibited  a  similitude,  an  anticipation  as  it  were  of  gen- 
uine tragedy  ;  but  that  ii  contained  also  all  the  principal  requisites 
of  a  dramatic  poem,  fable  alone  excepted  :  of  these  the  first  and 
most  important  is,  the  imitation  of  manners  or  character. 

The  manners  are  what  serve  to  mark  or  discriminate  the  differ- 
ent persons,  who  take  a  part  in  the  action  of  the  poem,  to  declare 
and  express  each  character's  peculiar  mode  of  speaking,  thinking, 
and  acting ;  and  compose  as  it  were  the  intellectual  image  of  the 
man.  The  principal  personage  in  this  poem  is  Job,  and  in  his  char- 
acter is  meant  to  be  exhibited  (as  far  as  is  consistent  with  human 
infirmity)  an  example  of  perfect  virtue.  This  is  intimated  in  the  ar- 
gument or  introduction,  but  is  still  more  eminently  displayed  by  his 
own  actions  and  sentiments.  He  is  holy,  devout,  and  most  piously 
and  reverently  impressed  with  the  sacred  "awe  of  his  divine  Creator  ; 
he  is  also  upright,  and  conscious  of  his  own  integrity  ;  he  is  patient 
of  evil,  and  yet  very  remote  from  that  insensibility  or  rather  stupidi- 
ty to  which  the  Stoic  school  pretended.  Oppressed  therefore  with 


LECT.  XXXIV.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  283 


unparalleled  misfortunes,  he  laments  his  misery,  and  even  wishes  a 
release  by  death  ;  in  other  words,  he  obeys,  and  gives  place  to  the 
dictates  of  nature  :  irritated,  however,  by  the  unjust  insinuations, 
and  the  severe  reproaches  of  his  pretended  friends,  he  is  more  ve- 
hemently exasperated,  and  the  too  great  confidence  in  his  own  right- 
eousness leads  him  to  expostulate  with  God  in  terms  scarcely  con- 
sistent with  piety  and  strict  decorum. 

It  must  be  observed,  that  the  first  speech  of  Job,  though  it  burst 
forth  with  all  the  vehemence  of  passion,  consists  wholly  of  complaint, 
"  the  words  of  a  desperate  man,  which  are  but  wind  ;'a  which  is  in- 
deed the  apology  that  he  immediately  makes  for  his  conduct ;  inti- 
mating, that  he  is  far  from  presuming  to  plead  with  God,  far  from 
daring  to  call  in  question  the  divine  decrees,  or  even  to  mention  his 
own  innocence  in  the  presence  of  his  all-just  Creator  :  nor  do  I  see 
any  good  reason  for  the  censure  which  has  been  passed  by  some 
commentators  upon  this  passage.  The  poet  seems,  with  great  judge- 
ment and  ingenuity,  to  have  performed  in  this  what  the  nature  of  his 
work  required.  He  has  depicted  the  affliction  and  anguish  of  Job, 
as  flowing  from  his  wounded  heart  in  a  manner  so  agreeable  to  hu- 
man nature  (and  certainly  so  far  venial)  that  it  may  be  truly  said, 
"  in  all  this  Job  sinned  not  with  his  lips."  It  is,  nevertheless,  em- 
bellished by  such  affecting  imagery,  and  inspired  with  such  a  warmth 
and  force  of  sentiment,  that  we  find  it  afforded  ample  scope  for  cal- 
umny ;  nor  did  the  unkind  witnesses  of  his  sufferings  permit  so  fair 
an  opportunity  to  escape.  The  occasion  is  eagerly  embraced  by 
Eliphaz,  to  rebuke  the  impatience  of  Job ;  and,  not  satisfied  with 
this,  -he  proceeds  to  accuse  him  in  direct  terms  of  wanting  fortitude, 
and  obliquely  to  insinuate  something  of  a  deeper  dye.  Though 
deeply  hurt  with  the  coarse  reproaches  of  Eliphaz,  still,  however, 
when  Job  afterwards  complains  of  the  severity  of  God,  he  cautiously 
refrains  from  violent  expostulations  with  his  Creator,  and,  contented 
with  the  simple  expression  of  affliction,  he  humbly  confesses  himself 
a  sinner.2  Hence,  I  think,  it  is  evident,  that  those  vehement  and 
perverse  attestations  of  his  innocence,  those  murmurs  against  the  di- 
vine Providence,  which  his  tottering  virtue  afterwards  permits,  are 
to  be  considered  merely  as  the  consequences  of  momentary  passion, 
and  not  as  the  ordinary  effects  of  his  settled  character  or  manners. 
They  prove  him  at  the  very  worst  not  an  irreligious  man,  but  a  man 
possessed  of  integrity,  and  too  confident  of  it ;  a  man  oppressed  with 
1  Job  vi.  26.  2  See  chap.  vii.  20. 


284  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  LECT.  XXXIV. 


almost  every  imaginable  evil,  both  corporal  and  mental,  and  hurried 
beyond  the  limits  of  virtue  by  the  strong  influence  of  pain  and  afflic- 
tion. When,  on  the  contrary,  his  importunate  visiters  abandon  by 
silence  the  cause  which  they  had  so  wantonly  and  so  maliciously 
maintained ;  and  cease  unjustly  to  load  him  with  unmerited  crimina- 
tions ;  though  he  defends  his  argument  with  scarcely  less  obstinacy ; 
yet  the  vehemence  of  his  grief  appears  gradually  to  subside,  he  re- 
turns to  himself,  and  explains  his  sentiments  with  more  candour  and 
sedateness :  and  however  we  may  blame  him  for  assuming  too  much 
of  arrogance  in  his  appeals  to  the  Almighty,  certainly  his  defence 
against  the  accusations  of  Eliphaz  is  no  more  than  the  occasion  will 
strictly  justify.  Observe,  in  the  first  place,  how  admirably  the  con- 
fidence and  perseverance  of  Job  is  displayed  in  replying  to  the  slan- 
der of  his  false  friends  : 

"  Ut  vivit  Deus,  qui  ius  meum  amovit : 

"  Et  omnipotens,  qui  amarore  imbuit  animam  meara  ; 

"  (Nam  omnino  adhuc  mens  mihi  constat, 

"  Et  spiritus  Dei  est  in  naribus  meis  :) 

"  Ita  nunquain  labia  mea  rem  iniquam  loquentur, 

"  Nee  lingua  mea  quod  falsum  est  proferet : 

"  Absit,  ut  a  vobis  ius  stare  pronunciem  : 

"  Donee  expiravero,  non  amovebo  a  me  integritatem  meam. 

"  lustitiam  meam  firmiter  retineo,  nee  earn  dimittam  ; 

"  In  omni  vita  cor  meam  nunquam  me  probro  adficiet ; 

"  Fiat,  sicut  improbus,  inimicus  meus ; 

"  Et  qui  sese  incitat  contra,  me,  sicut  iniustus."3 

But  how  magnificent,  how  noble,  how  inviting  and  beautiful  is  that 
image  of  virtue,  in  which  he  delineates  his  past  life  1  What  dignity 
and  authority  does  he  seem  to  possess ! 

"  Cum  egrederer  ad  portam,  super  urbe  ; 

"  Cum  in  foro  tribunal  meum  constituerem  : 

"  Viderunt  me  iuvenes,  et  sese  occultarunt ; 

11  Et  senes  assurrexerunt,  steterunt : 

"  Principes  cohibuerunt  sermonem, 

"  Et  ori  suo  manum  imposuerunt  : 

"  Vox  nobilium  obmutuit ; 

"  Et  lingua  eorum  palato  adhaesit  :"4 

What  liberality !  what  a  promptitude  in  beneficence  ! 

"  Profecto  auris  audiebat,  et  beatum  me  praedicabat ; 
"  Et  oculos  videbat,  et  testimonium  mihi  perhibebat : 
•'  Quoniam  statim  vindicabam  inopem  vociferantem  ; 

3  Chap,  xxvii.  2—7.  4  Chap.  xxix.  7—10. 


LECT.  XXXIV.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  285 


"  Et  pupillum,  et  cui  nullus  opitulator  : 

"  Benedictio  pereuntis  super  me  semper  descendebat ; 

"  Et  cor  viduae  ut  caneret  efficiebam."5 

What  sanctity,  what  integrity  in  a  judicial  capacity  ! 

"  lustitiam  indui,  et  ipsa  me  vestivit; 

"  Instar  pallii  et  tiarae  iudicium  meum  : — 

"  Pater  eram  egenis  ; 

"  Et  in  causam  etiam  ignoti  solebam  inquirere  ; 

"  Confringebam  molares  oppressoris  ; 

"  Et  a  dentibus  eius  excutiebam  praedam."® 

But  what  can  be  more  engaging  than  the  purity  of  his  devotion,  and 
his  reverence  for  the  Supreme  Being,  founded  upon  the  best  and 
most  philosophical  principles  ?  Besides  that  through  the  whole  there 
runs  a  strain  of  the  most  amiable  tenderness  and  humanity  : 

"  Quae  enim  portio  a  Deo  destinata  desuper ; 

"  Et  haereditas  ab  omnipotente  de  excelsis  ? 

"  Annon  excidium  iniusto  ? 

"  Et  abalienatio  operantibus  iniquitatem  ? 

"  Nonne  Ille  semper  videt  vias  meas  ? 

"  Et  ornnes  gressus  meos  dinumerat  ? 

"  Si  sprcvi  causam  servi  mei, 

"  Et  ancillae  meae,  cum  mecurn  lite  contenderent ; 

•'  Quid  turn  facerem,  cum  surgeret  Deus  ; 

"  Et  cum  visitaret,  quid  illi  responderem? 

"  Nonne  in  ventre,  qui  me  fecit,  idem  ilium  fecit  ? 

"  Nonne  formavit  nos  in  utero  unus  ?"? 

Aristotle  has  remarked,  that  the  example  of  a  singularly  good 
man  falling  from  prosperous  circumstances  into  misfortune,  is  by  no 
means  a  proper  subject  for  a  tragedy  ;  since  it  is  offensive  and  inde- 
cent rather  than  piteous  or  terrible.8  This  remark,  though  consis- 
tent enough  with  the  Greek  drama,  and  with  the  sentiments  and 
manners  of  the  heathens,  is  scarcely  applicable  to  our  tragedy,  and 
still  less  to  the  poem  of  Job.  "  Pity,"  says  the  same  author  on  an- 
other occasion,  "  is  excited  when  adversity  falls  upon  those  who  are 
undeserving  of  it."  Great  virtue  therefore  plunged  into  great  mis- 
fortunes, so  far  from  being  an  unsuitable  subject,  ought  to  be  the 
most  direct  and  proper  means  of  moving  compassion.  "  Terror  is 
excited  by  a  representation  of  the  misery  of  such  persons  as  bear  the 
nearest  resemblr.ice  to  ourselves ;"  the  misfortunes  therefore  of  those 
who  are  vicious  in  an  extreme,  are  not  much  calculated  to  excite 

5  Chap.  xxix.  11—13.  6  Chap.  xxix.  14, 1C,  17. 

7  Chap.  xxxi.  2—4.  13—15.  8  poet.  cap.  xiii. 


386  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XXXIV. 

terror  ;  but  this  is  by  no  means  the  case  with  regard  to  the  misery 
of  such  as  are  eminently  good  ;  for  if  we  fear  for  ourselves  when  we 
see  moderate  virtue  in  affliction,  much  more,  surely,  when  a  superior 
degree  of  it  is  in  that  state.  It  appears  to  me,  therefore,  that  Aristotle 
was  not  of  opinion,  that  the  example  of  a  very  good  man  in  extreme 
affliction  is  ill  calculated  to  excite  either  pity  or  terror  ;  but  rather  is 
a  spectacle  likely  to  prove  injurious  to  the  cause  of  virtue,  and  there- 
fore disgusting  and  detestable,  and  consequently  unfit  to  be  produc- 
ed upon  the  stage.  This  opinion  of  the  philosopher  seems  to  result 
from  an  unjust  and  visionary  estimation  of  human  virtue,  to  repress 
which  appears  to  have  been  the  very  design  and  object  of  the  book 
of  Job.  The  character  of  Job  indeed,  though  approaching  so  near 
to  the  perfection  of  virtue,  seems,  notwithstanding,  to  have  a  consid- 
erable alloy  of  human  infirmity,  so  as  neither  to  want  probability,  nor 
to  lose  its  effect  in  exciting  terror.  For  if  it  be  extreme  wickedness 
in  the  most  upright  of  men,  when  oppressed  with  the  severest  mise- 
ry, to  murmur  at  all  against  the  divine  justice,  who  then  shall  stand 
before  God  ?  Who  shall  expect  to  pass  through  the  pilgrimage  of 
life  without  his  portion  of  evil  and  of  sin  1  The  end  of  the  poem  is 
moreover  by  no  means  ill  calculated  to  excite  terror  ;  since  this 
moral  is  particularly  inculcated  in  it,  "  Be  not  high-minded,  but 
fear :"  and  Job  himself  sets  before  us,  what  impression  the  example 
of  his  misfortunes  ought  to  make  upon  our  minds  in  this  respect : 

"  Super  hoc  ipsum  attoniti  stupebunt  integri ; 
"  Et  innocens  adversus  hypocritam  zelo  flagrabit : 
"  Sed  obstinate  persistet  in  via  sua  iustus  ; 
"  Et  puro  manuum  augebitur  constantia."9 

The  three  friends  are  exactly  such  characters  as  the  nature  of 
the  poem  required.  They  are  severe,  irritable,  rough  censors, 
readily  and  with  apparent  satisfaction  deviating  from  the  purpose  of 
consolation  into  reproof  and  contumely.  Even  from  the  very  first 
they  manifest  this  evil  propensity,  and  indicate  what  is  to  be  expect- 
ed from  them.  The  first  of  them,  indeed,  in  the  opening  of  his 
harangue,  assumes  an  air  of  candour  : 

"  Si  tentemus  te  adloqui,  an  aegre  laturus  es  ?"10 
Indignation  is,  however,  instantly  predominant  : 

"  At  cohibere  sermones  quis  valeat  ?" 
The  second  flames  forth  at  once  : 

9  Chap,  xviii.  8,  9.  10  Chap.  iv.  2. 


LECT.  XXXIV.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  287 

"  Quousque  proloqueris  ista, 

"  Et  verba  oris  tui  erunt  instar  venti  vehementi  ?"H 

But  remark  the  third  : 

"  Annon  multitudini  verborum  respondebitur  ? 
"  Numquid  vir  loquax  habebitur  iustus  ? 
"  An  mendacia  tua  hominibus  silentium  imponent  ? 
"  Et  turn  irriseris,  nemo  tibi  pudorem  incutiet?"1^ 

They  are  represented  as  illiberal,  cententious  ;    inclined  to  torture 
every  thing  to  the  worst  of  purposes  : 

"  An  Deus  pervertet  ius  ? 

"  Anne  omnipotens  distorquebit  iustitiam  ?"13 

Where  observe,  Job  has  not  as  yet  uttered  an  intemperate  expres- 
sion in  disparagement  of  the  divine  justice. 

"  Quin  tu  irritam  facis  religionem, 

"  Et  minuis  precationcm  coram  Deo. "14 

Such  is  the  invective  of  the  other  of  them.     They  are  also  proud, 
contemptuous,  and  arrogate  too  much  to  their  own  wisdom  : 

"  Quamobrem  reputamur  instar  bruti  pecoris ; 

"  Impuri  habemur  in  oculis  vestris  ? 

"  O  lanians  seipsum  in  ira  sua  ! 

"  Ergone  propter  te  derelinquetur  tellus? 

"  Et  revelletur  rupes  e  loco  suo  ? 

"  Imo  vero  improborum  lumen  extinguetur."15(A) 

Nor  is  Zophar,  who  takes  up  the  subject  after  Bildad,  more  modest : 
"  Profecto  cogitationes  meae  ad  respondendum  me  stimulant, 
"  Et  propterea  festinus  me  impellit  impetus  : 
"  Castigationem  mihi  ignominiosam  audiero  ? 
"  Ergo  spiritus  intelligentiae  meae  me  cogit  respondere."16 

The  conduct  of  all  these  severe  censors  is  much  the  same 
through  the  whole  piece.  Eliphaz  indeed,  who  begins  in  the  mild- 
est terms,  descends  afterwards  to  the  severest  reproaches ;  and  he 
indirectly  charges  Job  with  the  most  atroci6us  offences  :  from  which 
intemperance  of  language,  it  must  be  confessed,  the  others  refrain. 
Bildad,  not  to  be  silent,  repeats  in  a  brief  and  florid  manner  the  sub- 
ject, which  had  already  been  twice  treated  of  by  the  others,  namely, 
the  majesty  and  holiness  of  God  ;  and  Zophar,  withdrawing  from 
the  contest,  deserts  entirely  the  cause  of  his  companion,  and  leaves 
the  field  to  Job.  The  business  of  defamation  indeed  seems  with 
great  propriety,  committed  to  three  persons.  It  would  have  been 

11  Chap.  viii.  2.  13  Chap.  viii.  3.  :   15  Chap,  xviii.  3—5. 

12  Chap.  xi.  2,  3.  14  Chap.  xv.  4.  16  Chap.  xx.  2,  3. 


288  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.  XXXIV. 

too  confined  and  trivial  in  the  hands  of  one ;  and,  amongst  a  crowd 
of  accusers,  too  confused  and  clamorous.  There  appears,  however, 
but  little  difference  in  the  manners  of  the  three  friends ;  for  in  them 
the  poet  has  rather  studied  to  display  the  progress  of  the  passions, 
than  any  diversity  of  character.  But  though  the  nice  and  fastidious 
criticism  of  the  moderns  demand  variety  in  this  respect,  the  simpli- 
city of  infant  poetry  will  be  excused  by  every  person  of  real  judge- 
ment ;  and  I  think  this  deficiency  (if  such  it  may  be  called)  is  am- 
ply compensated  by  the  gravity  and  importance  of  the  subject  and 
sentiments. 

The  lenity  and  moderation  of  Elihu  serves  as  a  beautiful  con- 
trast to  the  intemperance  and  asperity  of  the  other  three.  He  is 
pious,  mild  and  equitable  ;  equally  free  from  adulation  and  severity  ; 
and  endued  with  singular  wisdom,  which  he  attributes  entirely  to 
the  inspiration  of  God  :  and  his  modesty,  moderation,  and  wisdom, 
are  the  more  entitled  to  commendation  when  we  consider  his  unripe 
youth.  As  the  characters  of  his  detractors  were  in  all  respects  cal- 
culated to  inflame  the  mind  of  Job;  that  of  this  arbitrator  is  admi- 
rably adapted  to  sooth  and  compose  it :  to  this  point  the  whole  drift 
of  the  argument  tends,  and  on  this  the  very  purport  of  it  seems  to 
depend. (B) 

The  interposition  of  the  Deity,  and  its  connexion  with  the  gen- 
eral design  of  the  poem,  I  have  formerly  noticed.  I  will  only  add, 
that  although  some  critics  have  really  thought  the  whole  address  in- 
consistent, and  foreign  to  the  subject,  no  man  has  ever  accounted  it 
in  any  respect  unworthy  of  that  supreme  Majesty  to  which  it  is  as- 
cribed. 

Another  circumstance  deserving  particular  attention  in  a  poem  of 
this  kind,  is  the  sentiment ;  which  must  be  agreeable  to  the  subject, 
and  embellished  with  proper  expression.  It  is  by  Aristotle  enume- 
rated among  the  essentials  of  a  dramatic  poem  ;  not  indeed  as  pecu- 
liar to  that  species  of  poetry  alone,  but  as  common,  and  of  the  great- 
est importance  to  all.  Manners  or  character  are  essential  only  to 
that  poetry  in  which  living  persons  are  introduced ;  and  all  such 
poems  must  afford  an  exact  representation  of  human  manners :  but 
sentiment  is  essential  to  every  poem,  indeed  to  every  composition 
whatever.  It  respects  both  persons  and  things ;  as  far  as  it  regards 
persons,  it  is  particularly  concerned  in  the  delineation  of  the  man- 
ners and  passions  :  and  those  instances  to  which  I  have  just  been 
adverting,  are  sentiments  expressive  of  manners.  Those  which  re- 


LECT.  XXXIV.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  289 

late  to  the  delineation  of  the  passions,  and  to  the  description  of  other 
objects,  yet  remain  unnoticed  in  this  Lecture.  As  I  formerly,  how- 
ever, treated  of  these  subjects  in  general,  I  could  scarcely  avoid  pro- 
ducing some  examples  from  this  poem ;  for  in  demonstrating  the 
power  of  the  poetic  diction  in  exciting  the  passions,  I  could  not  pos- 
sibly deduce  my  instances  from  a  better  source.17  On  the  present 
occasion,  therefore,  I  shall  study  brevity,  and  avoid  as  much  as  pos- 
sible the  tediousness  of  repetition. 

The  poem  of  Job  abounds  chiefly  in  the  more  vehement  passions, 
grief  and  anger,  indignation  and  violent  contention.  It  is  adapted 
in  every  respect  to  the  incitement  of  terror  ;  and,  as  the  specimens 
already  quoted  will  sufficiently  prove,  is  universally  animated  with 
the  true  spirit  of  sublimity.  It  is  however  not  wanting  in  the  gen- 
tler affections ;  the  following  complaints,  for  instance,  are  replete 
with  an  affecting  spirit  of  melancholy  : 

"  Homo  natus  de  muliere, 

"  Brevis  est  dierum,  et  satur  tumultus : 

"  Ut  flos  emicat,  et  languescit ; 

"  Fugitque  ut  umbra,  et  non  subsistit, 

"  Etiamne  super  hunc  oculos  tuos  aperuisti  ? 

"  Et  me  adduces  in  iudicium  tecum  ? — 

"  Remove  conspectum  ab  eo,  ut  remissionis  aliquid  habeat ; 

"  Et  acquiescat  diei  suo  sicut  mercenarius  :"18 

'The  whole  passage  abounds  with  the  most  beautiful  imagery,  and  is 
a  most  perfect  specimen  of  the  elegiac.  His  grief  afterwards  be- 
comes more  fervent,  but  is  at  the  same  time  soft  and  querimonious. 

"  Quousque  vexabitis  animam  nieam, 

"  Et  conterentis  me  sermonibus  ? 

"  lam  decem  vicibus  me  contumelia  affecistis  ; 

"  Non  erubescitis,  in  me  usque  obfirmati  estis. — 

"  Miseremini  mei,  miseremini  mei,  O  vos  amici  mei  ! 

"  Nam  Dei  manus  me  plaga  affecit. 

"  Quianam  insectamini  me,  ut  Deus ; 

"  Neque  carna  mea  satiati  estis  ?"19 

That  self-indulgence  which  is  so  natural  to  the  passion  of  hope  ;  its 
ingenuity  in  drawing  pictures  of  future  felicity ;  its  credulity  in 
cherishing  these  ideas,  and  the  gaiety  and  elevation  of  mind  with 
which  it  describes  them,  are  finely  expressed  by  Job  in  the  passage 
immediately  following  the  relation  of  his  past  life  : 

17  See  Lect.  xiv.  xvi.  xvii.  18  Chap.  xiv.  1,  2.  3,  6. 

19  Chap.  xix.  2,  3,  21,  22. 
37 


290  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  L.ECT.    XXXIV- 

"  Proinde  dicebam,  in  nido  meo  expirabo  : 

"  Et  ut  arenam  multiplicabo  dies  : 

"  Radix  mea  sese  dilatabit  ad  aquas  ; 

"  Et  ros  commorabitur  in  ramo  meo  : 

"  Gloria  mea  semper  erit  mecum  recens  ; 

"  Et  arcus  meus  in  manu  mea  renovabitur  : 

"  Me  audient,  et  expectabunt ; 

"  Et  ad  consilium  meum  intend  tacebunt : 

"  Postquam  locutus  fuero,  nihil  iterabunt; 

"  Et  super  eos  stillabit  oratio  mea  : 

"  Et  expectabunt  me,  ut  pluviam ; 

"  Et  os  suum  diducent  ad  imbrem  serotinum."20 

To  this  part  of  the  subject,  which  relates  to  the  delineation  of 
the  passions,  may  be  referred  those  delicate  touches  which  animate 
almost  every  description,  and  which  are  drawn  from  the  most  inti- 
mate knowledge  of  the  genuine  emotions  of  the  human  soul.  I  shall 
content  myself  with  one  example  out  of  the  many  which  the  com- 
pass of  the  work  affords.  It  is  exactly  copied  from  nature ;  for 
when  events  take  place  according  to  our  ardent  wishes,  but  quite 
contrary  to  our  expectations,  we  have  the  utmost  difficulty  to  believe 
them  real.  Job  thus  expresses  himself  respecting  God  : 
"  Si  invocavero,  et  mihi  respondent, 
"  Non  crederem,  quod  exaudiverit  vocem  meam."21 

This  is  admirably  expressive  both  of  the  majesty  of  God,  and  of  the 
severity  which  he  exercised  towards  Job  ;  it  is  also  no  less  descrip- 
tive of  the  humiliation  and  despair  of  the  sufferer. 

"  Adridebo  eis,  non  credent  :"22 

says  Job  of  his  dependants  ;  in  which  is  expressed  his  own  dignity 
and  gravity  united  with  urbanity,  and  at  the  same  time  their  unvio- 
lated  attachment  to  him.  Thus  too,  by  the  same  circumstance,  is 
depicted  both  the  ardour  and  alacrity  of  the  war-horse,  and  his  ea- 
gerness for  the  battle  : 

"  Cum  trepidatione  et  fremitu  vorat  terram ; 

"  Nee  credit,  quod  tubae  sit  sonitus  : 

"  Pergente  iam  tuba,  dicit,  euge  ; 

"  Et  a  longinquo  odoratur  praelium, 

"  Tonitru  principum  et  clangorem."23 

This  passage,  which  has  indeed  always  attracted  general  admi- 
ration, will  also  serve  to  exemplify  the  excellence  of  the  descriptive 
parts  of  this  poem  :  and  from  the  same  circumstance  we  may  fairly 

20  Ch.  xix.  11—23.      21  Ch.  ix.  16.      23  Ch.  xxix.  34.      23  Ch.  xxxix.  24, 25. 


LECT.  XXXIV.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  291 

conjecture,  that  the  pictures,  which  are  exhibited  in  other  parts 
of  the  work,  would  appear  no  less  striking  resemblances  of  the  reali- 
ties, were  we  equally  well  acquainted  with  the  originals.  To  judge 
rightly  of  a  description,  we  ought  to  have  as  clear  and  distinct  ideas 
of  the  thing  itself  as  the  author.  The  idea  of  thunder  is  familiar  to 
all  mankind  ;  observe,  therefore,  how  it  is  depicted  by  Elihu  : 

"  Ob  hoc  etiam  expavescit  cor  meum, 

"  Et  subsultim  trepidat  e  sede  sua  : 

il  Attente  audite  vocis  eius  fremitum, 

"  Et  murmur  quod  ex  ore  eius  egreditur  ! 

"  Sub  omne  coelum  rectus  eius  impetus, 

"  Et  lumen  eius  in  extremas  oras  terrae. 

"  Post  illud  rugit  vox  : 

"  Intonat  voce  maiestatis  suae  ; 

"  Neque  investigari  poterit,  cum  audita  fuerit,  vox  eius."24(c) 

It  would  be  superfluous  to  insist  any  longer  on  a  minute  detail, 
since  the  most  splendid  examples  of  every  beauty  and  elegance  of 
sentiment,  of  imagery,  and  of  diction,  meet  the  eye  of  the  attentive 
reader  in  every  part  of  the  poem.  Let  it  suffice  to  say,  that  the 
dignity  of  the  style  is  answerable  to  that  of  the  subject ;  its  force 
and  energy  to  the  greatness  of  those  passions  which  it  describes : 
and  as  this  production  excels  all  the  other  remains  of  the  Hebrew 
poetry  in  economy  and  arrangement,  so  it  yields  to  none  in  sublimi- 
ty of  style,  and  in  every  grace  and  excellence  of  composition. 
Among  the  principal  of  these  may  be  accounted  the  accurate  and 
perfectly  poetical  conformation  of  the  sentences,  which  is  indeed 
generally  most  observable  in  the  most  ancient  of  the  poetical  com- 
positions of  the  Hebrews.  Here,  however,  as  is  natural  and  proper 
in  a  poem  of  so  great  length  and  sublimity,  the  writer's  skill  is  dis- 
played in  the  proper  adjustment  of  the  period,  and  in  the  accurate 
distribution  of  the  members,  rather  than  in  the  antithesis  of  words, 
or  in  any  laboured  adaptation  of  the  parallelisms. 

Having  now  gone  through  the  several  topics,  of  which  I  purpos- 
ed to  treat  in  my  investigation  of  the  nature  of  the  Hebrew  poetry, 
it  is  time  that  my  present  undertaking  should  draw  towards  a  con- 
clusion. If  in  the  prosecution  of  my  design,  I  have  by  my  industry 
been  able  to  accomplish  any  thing  that  may  be  deemed  satisfactory, 
it  is  but  common  justice  to  attribute  the  greatest  part  of  my  success 
to  you,  Gentlemen,  who  have  condescended  to  look  with  a  propitious 

24  JOB  xxxvii.  1 — 4. 


292  THE  POEM  OF  JOB,  LfiCT.  XXXIV. 


eye  upon  my  endeavours,  and  to  invigorate  my  application  by  your 
attention  and  partiality.  When,  indeed,  I  first  meditated  this  sys- 
tem of  instruction,  I  foresaw,  as  well  from  the  native  sublimity  and 
obscurity  of  the  subject,  as  from  the  extreme  antiquity  of  the  He- 
brew writings,  much  subtile  investigation,  much  difficult  explication, 
much  doubtful  assertion,  and  dangerous  error.  I  foresaw  too,  and 
daily  experience  confirmed  my  apprehensions,  that  in  this  maze  of 
science,  the  vestiges  and  the  documents  of  the  learned  would  be 
frequently  found  but  imperfect  guides.  That  my  courage  did  not 
utterly  forsake  me  in  the  course  of  my  undertaking,  is  to  be  attribut- 
ed entirely  to  the  favour  and  encouragement  which  I  received  from 
you.  I  had  the  satisfaction  to  find  my  plan  meet  with  the  approba- 
tion of  some  of  the  greatest  and  most  eminent  characters  in  the  learn- 
ed world,  as  being  neither  inconsistent  with  the  design  of  this  insti- 
tution, the  dignity  of  this  University,  nor  the  profit  and  utility  of  the 
students.  I  had  often  the  singular  pleasure  of  seeing,  among  my 
auditors,  many  persons,  to  whom  it  would  better  become  me  to  ap- 
ply for  instruction  in  this  and  in  every  other  branch  of  literature  ; 
and  the  young  men,  for  whose  benefit  this  institution  was  establish- 
ed, I  have  found  ever  diligent  and  constant  in  their  attendance  :  all 
which  testimonies  of  your  favour,  unless  I  accounted  as  obligations, 
I  should  think  either  too  arrogantly  of  myself,  or  too  disrespectfully 
of  you.  To  all  of  you,  therefore,  I  feel,  and  shall  for  ever  feel  my- 
self obliged  :  the  remembrance  of  your  kindness  will,  in  every  vicis- 
situde of  my  condition,  be  pleasing  to  me  ;  nor  is  there  any  danger 
of  my  suffering  that  to  escape  my  memory,  which  I  must  ever  es- 
teem the  great  ornament  of  my  life. 

But  to  return  to  a  point  which  is  of  more  importance,  and  which 
has  indeed  been  the  principal  object  of  all  my  endeavours.  I  should 
now  think  myself  called  upon,  in  the  last  place,  to  exhort  this  assem- 
bly of  accomplished  youths  to  an  assiduous  application  to  these  stu- 
dies, but  that  I  confess  I  think  you  rather  demand  commendation 
than  advice.  For  the  Hebrew  language,  which  was  for  a  series  of 
years  in  a  manner  obsolete  and  neglected,  has  been  lately  cultivated 
by  you  with  such  attention  and  application,  and  has  obtained  so  re- 
spectable a  place  among  the  other  branches  of  erudition,  that  it 
seems,  through  your  means,  to  have  recovered,  after  a  tedious  exile, 
all  its  former  dignity  and  importance.  Proceed,  therefore,  in  the 
same  career  with  the  same  ardour  and  success,  and  consider  it  as  a 
worrk  worthy  of  your  utmost  exertions  to  illustrate  and  cultivate  this 


LECT.  XXXIV.  THE  POEM  OF  JOB.  293 

department  of  literature.  You  will  find  it  no  less  elegant  and  agree- 
able, than  useful  and  instructive  ;  abounding  in  information  no  less 
curious  for  its  extent  and  variety,  than  for  its  great  importance  and 
venerable  sanctity  ;  deserving  the  attention  of  every  liberal  mind ; 
essential  to  all  who  would  be  proficients  in  theology :  a  branch  of 
literature,  in  a  word,  which  will  confer  credit  upon  yourselves,  will 
be  an  honour  to  the  university,  and  an  advantage  to  the  church.  I 
congratulate  you,  gentlemen,  on  having  an  instructer,25  who,  from  his 
authority,  example,  assiduity,  and  information,  will  be  found  in  no 
respect  wanting  to  your  profit  and  accommodation ;  a  gentleman  no 
less  eminent  for  his  abilities  and  profound  erudition,  than  for  the 
candour,  urbanity,  and  gentleness  of  his  manners.  He  will  unfold 
to  you  the  inexhaustible  treasures  of  oriental  literature,  he  will  open 
to  your  view  an  unbounded  field  of  science  and  of  fame.  It  is  suf- 
ficient for  me  to  have  discovered  to  you  a  few  of  the  more  delight- 
ful retreats  of  this  paradise  :  and  could  I  flatter  myself  that  my  en- 
deavours have  been  so  fortunate  as  to  allure  or  excite  any  to  these 
studies,  or  even  to  stimulate  and  keep  alive  your  attention  to  this 
department  of  literature,  I  should  think  that  I  had  received  the  most 
honourable,  the  most  grateful  reward  of  my  labours. 


25  Dr.  THOMAS  HUNT,  King's  Professor  of  Hebrew,  and  Laudian  Professor 
of  the  Arabic  language. 


BRIEF   CONFUTATION 


OP 


BISHOP   HARE'S    SYSTEM   OF   HEBREW   METRE. 

IT  is  well  known,  that  an  hypothesis  was  invented  by  the  late 
bishop  Hare  concerning  the  Hebrew  metres ;  and  the  arguments, 
which  he  had  advanced  in  its  favour,  appeared  so  conclusive  to 
some  persons  of  great  erudition,  as  to  persuade  them,  that  the  learn- 
ed prelate  had  fortunately  revived  the  knowledge  of  the  true  He- 
brew versification,  after  an  oblivion  of  more  than  two  thousand 
years  ;  and  that  he  had  established  his  opinion  by  such  irresistible 
proofs,  as  to  place  it  beyond  the  utmost  efforts  of  controversy. 
Whoever,  indeed,  encounters  it  in  such  a  manner,  as  only  to  call 
in  question  some  particular  part,  to  intimate  only  an  occasional 
scruple,  or  to  attack  but  one  or  two  of  his  arguments,  will,  doubtless, 
"  attempt  in  vain1  to  root  out  of  their  minds  an  opinion  which  has 
been  so  deeply  implanted  and  established  by  the  authority  of  so  great 
a  man  :  much  less  will  any  person  obtain  credit  who  shall  affirm, 
that  he  has  discovered  what  was  not  discovered  by  the  learned  pre- 
late, unless  by  the  strongest  arguments  he  not  only  overthrows  the 
hypothesis  which  he  rejects,  but  confirms  his  own.  Avoiding  there- 
fore every  subterfuge,  I  shall  come  immediately  to  the  point,  and  de- 
monstrate by  the  clearest  and  most  decisive  instances,  which  is  the 
only  method  of  extorting  assent  from  the  incredulous,  that  I  have 
actually  discovered  the  nature  and  principles  of  this  poetry,"  and 
those  directly  contrary  to  the  system  which  he  has  adopted.  I  shall, 
on  this  occasion,  make  use  of  the  same  example  that  bishop  Hare 
himself  has  chosen  ;  which,  when  properly  considered,  will,  I  think, 
sufficiently  explain  and  prove  my  opinion ;  and  at  the  same  time  ef- 
fectually overturn  his  hypothesis. 

1  See  Hare's  Preface  to  the  Psalms,  at  the  beginning. 


CONFUTATION  OF  BISHOP  HARfi's  HEBREW  METRE.  295 

PSALM    CXI. 

1.  odeh  javoh  becol  lebab,  i. 

2.  besod  jesarim  veyedah. 

3.  gcdolim  mayase  javoh,  ii. 

4.  derusim  lecol  chepzehein. 

5.  hod  vehadar  poyaloj  iii. 

6.  vezidkatho  yomedeth  layad. 

7.  zecer  yasah  leniphlothdv ;  iv. 

8.  chanun  verachkm  javoh. 

9.  tereph  nathan  liredy^  v. 

10.  jizcor  leyolam  beritlio. 

11.  coach  mayasav  higfd  leSamo,  vi. 

12.  latKcth  lahem  nachdlath  goim. 

13.  mayase  jaddv  emeth  umispat;  -vii. 

14.  neemanim  col  pikudav  : 

15.  seraucim  luyad  leyolam,  viii. 
1C.  yasunn  beeraeth  vejasar. 

17.  peduth  saldch  leyarao,  ix. 

18.  zivah  leyoldm  beritho. 

19.  kados  vanord  semo ;  x. 

20.  resith  chocmdh  jirdth  javoh. 

21.  secel  tob  lecol  yosehem,  xi. 

22.  tehilathu  yom^deth  layad. 

From  this  alphabetic  Psalm,  which  is  divided  into  its  proper 
verses  according  to  the  initial  letters,  and  restored  to  its  proper 
numbers  without  any  violation  of  the  text,  without  even  any  change 
of  the  Masoretic  vowels  (except  that  with  bishop  Hare,  I  read 
javoh)  the  canons  of  the  Hebrew  metre  are  to  be  collected  and  es- 
tablished. 
.  I.  2  In  the  first  place  then,  in  the  Hebrew  poetry  the  feet  are 

2  The  following  are  the  principal  rules  or  canons  of  bishop  Hare  : 

1.  In  Hebrew  poetry  all  the  feet  are  two  syllables. 

2.  No  regard  is  paid  to  the  quantity  of  the  syllables. 

3.  When  the  number  of  the  syllables  is  even,  the  verse  is  Trochaic,  placing 
the  accent  on  the  first  syllable. 

4.  If  the  number  of  syllables  be  odd,  they  are  to  be  accounted  Iambics,  and 
the  accent  is  to  be  placed  on   the  second  syllable,  in  order  to  preserve  the 
rhythm. 

5.  The  periods  mostly  consist  of  two  verses,  often  three  or  four,  and  some- 
times more. 


296  CONFUTATION  OF  BISHOP  HARE'S  HEBREW  METRE. 


not  all  dissyllables  :  for  in  verse  3,  11,  16, — lim  mas>a — coach  maya 
— im  be — are  Dactyls  ;  in  verse  13,  14,  ma^ase,  neema — are  Ana- 
paests :  contrary  to  the  first  canon  of  bishop  Hare. 

II.  Attention  must  always  be  paid  to  the  quantity  of  the  sylla- 
bles, for  the  same  word,  as  often  as  it  occurs,  is  always  of  the  same 
quantity  ;  for  instance,  javoh,  lecol,  are  constantly  Iambics,  lay  ad  is 
always  a  Trochaic,  ma^ase   an  Anapaest ;  le^olam  is  uniformly  an 
Arnphimaser :  beritho,  3>omedeth,  is  an  Amphibrachis  :  contrary  to 
the  second  canon  of  bishop  Hare. 

III.  The  verses  are  either  Trochaic,  which  admit  a  Dactyl ; 
or  Iambic,  which  admit  an  Anapaest ;  but  it  by  no  means  follows, 
that  a  verse  is  either  the  one  or  the  other,  from  its  consisting  of  an 
even  or  odd  number  of  syllables.     Those   indeed   which   consist 
of  an  even  number  of  syllables,  are,  for  the  most  part,  Iambic,  as 
verse  1,  2,  7,  13,  14,  15,  20 ;  but  they  are  also  sometimes  Trocha- 
ic, as  verse  3,  4,  10,  18,  21  ;  and   those  which  consist  of  an  odd 
number  of  syllables  are  mostly  Trochaic,   as  verse  5,  8,  9,  11,  16, 
19 ;  they  are  however  sometimes  Iambic,   as  verse  6,  12,  17,  22  : 
contrary  to  the  third  and  fourth  canon. 

IV.  The  verses  of  the  same  period  are  of  different  kinds,  period 
iii,  iv,  vi,  viii,  ix,  x,  xi,  a  few  only  excepted,  as  period  i,  ii,  v,  vii : 
and  those  which  are  of  the  same  kind  seldom  agree  in  the  number 
of  syllables  and  feet :  for  instance,  in  period  ii.  and  v.  the  first  verse 
is  a  Trochaic  Dimeter  Catalectic,  the  second   a  Trochaic  Dimeter 
Acatalectic ;  in  period  vii.  the  first  is  an  Iambic  Dimeter  Hyper- 
catalectic,  the  second  an  Iambic  Dimeter  Catalectic  :  the  only  in- 
stance of  verses  agreeing  in  a  kind,  agreeing  also  in  syllables  and 
feet  is  in  period  i.  and  those  are  Iambics  :  and  this  is  contrary  to 
the  sixth,  seventh,  and  eighth  canons. 

V.  All  the  periods  consist  of  only  two  verses  ;  for  properly  kopk 
and  resh  constitute  the  penultimate,  and  shin  and  tau  the  ultimate 
period ;  as  also  appeared  to  the  learned  Cappell  :3  this  is  contrary  to 
the  fifth  canon. 

6.  The  verses  of  the  same  period,  with  few  exceptions,  are  of  the  same  kind. 

7.  The  Trochaic  verses  mostly  agree  in  the  number  of  feet :    there  are 
however  a  few  exceptions. 

8.  In  the  Iambic  verses  the  feet  are  mostly  unequal,  though  in  some  in- 
stances they  are  equal. 

9.  Each  verse  does  not  contain  a  distinct  sense. 

See  HARE'S  Pref.  p.  27. 
3  See  CAPPELL,  Crit.  Sac.  Lib.  i.  cap.  xii.  11. 


CONFUTATION  OP  BISHOP  HARE'S  HEBREW  METRE.  297 

VI.  Each  verse  has  one  particular  sense  :  contrary  to  the  ninth 
canon. 

"  That  what  I  have  advanced  as  true  and  indisputable,  is  most 
true,  appears  from  the  examples  which  I  have  adduced ;  and  who- 
ever reads  attentively  the  book  of  Psalms,  will  find  similar  instances 
in  almost  every  page."4 

4  See  Hare's  Preface,  p.  31.  The  reader  has  doubtless  observed,  that  to 
establish  our  two  last  canons,  and  perhaps  the  others,  a  general  proposition  is 
deduced  from  a  particular  instance  :  viz.  so  it  is  in  this  Psalm,  and  so,  there- 
fore, it  must  be  in  all  Hebrew  poems  whatever  :  in  this,  however,  I  only  copy 
Bishop  Hare ;  for  to  say  the  truth,  upon  this  mode  of  reasoning,  and  begging 
the  question  at  the  same  time,  depends  his  whole  hypothesis. 

I  find  these  observations  have  greatly  displeased  Dr.  THOMAS  EDWARDS, 
a  strenuous  advocate  for  Bishop  Hare's  Metres.  Towards  the  conclusion  of 
his  Dissertation  lately  published,  he  asserts,  that  I  did  not  understand  what  I 
presumed  to  censure  :  and  to  this  accusation  I  indeed  plead  guilty.  For  I  will 
freely  confess,  that  I  neither  did  understand,  nor  do  I  yet  understand,  what  me- 
tre can  exist  without  any  distinction  of  long  and  short  syllables,  or  what  can  be 
meant  by  Trochaic,  Iambic,  and  Anacreontic  feet  and  verses,  where  no  re- 
gard is  paid  to  the  quantity  of  the  syllables.  Nor  do  I  understand  any  better, 
what  purpose  the  confutation  of  my  hypothesis  can  answer,  since  I  gave  it  my- 
self as  futile  and  false,  and  since  the  futility  of  it  was  one  of  the  strongest  ar- 
guments against  the  hypothesis  of  Hare.  This  argument  can  only  be  done 
away  by  proving,  that  my  hypothesis  is  not  founded  upon  the  same,  or  upon 
principles  equally  clear  and  certain  with  Bishop  Hare's :  this  unfortunately 
his  defender  has  not  done,  nor  indeed  can  he  do. 

With  regard  to  his  accusation,  that  I  have  acted  dogmatically,  and  that 
I  have  upon  my  own  authority,  and  without  any  regard  to  reason,  affirmed,  that 
the  hypothesis  of  Bishop  Hare  depends  altogether  upon  his  taking  for  granted 
the  very  point  to  be  proved  ;  in  order  to  exonerate  myself  from  so  invidious  an 
imputation,  and  in  order  to  confirm  what  I  before  had  advanced,  I  must  re- 
quest the  reader's  attention  to  the  following  particulars. 

The  cxith  Psalm  is  proposed  as  an  example,  and  is  divided  into  verses, 
whence  the  laws  of  Hebrew  versification!  are  to  be  deduced.  We  grant 
that  in  this  Psalm  the  verses  are  rightly  distinguished,  since  it  is  alphabet- 
ical, and  the  members  of  each  period  are  nearly  equal.  But  what  is  this 
to  the  establishment  of  a  certain  rule  for  the  division  of  others,  which  are 
neither  alphabetical,  nor  seem  capable  of  a  regular  and  equal  distribution  of 
the  sentences  and  members?  Indeed,  such  is  the  difficulty  of  Bishop 
Hare's  hypothesis  in  this  respect,  that  according  to  it  a  number  of  the 
Psalms  are  divided,  not  only  arbitrarily  and  oddly,  but  inelegantly,  inju- 
diciously, contrary  to  the  genius  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  and  contrary  to 
every  appearance  of  truth.  We  will  take  for  an  example  the  first  Psalm, 
on  which  the  author  prides  himself  not  a  little.  But  when  divided  into 
verses,  by  what  rule  is  it  accented?  Why  in  this  ratiier  tiian  any  other 
38 


298  CONFUTATION  OP  BISHOP  HARE'S  HEBREW  METRE. 


Since  this  is  the  case,  since  I  have  deduced  happily  the  abstruse 
principles  of  the  Hebrew  metre  from  this  Psalm,  or  rather  explained 
clearly  such  as  readily  presented  themselves,  and  have  reduced  them 
to  an  art,  easy,  perfect,  and  consistent ;  depending  upon  principles 

manner  ?  How  is  it  proved,  that  when  the  number  of  syllables  is  even,  the 
verse  is  Trochaic,  when  odd,  Iambic  ?  From  the  nature  and  principles  of 
Trochaic  and  Iambic  verse  ?  By  no  means — (for  in  the  Greek  and  Latin  Tro- 
chaics  and  Iambics,  the  case  is  directly  contrary,)  but  merely  from  the 
pleasure  and  will  of  the  author.  Why  then  may  not  I,  or  any  other  person, 
affix  different  accents  to  this  hundred  and  eleventh,  or  any  Psalm,  and  so  turn 
theTrochaics  of  Bishop  Hare  into  Iambics,  and  his  Iambics  intoTrochaics?  By 
what  rule  too  are  the  syllables-  numbered  ?  According  to  the  Masoretic  punctu- 
ation ?  By  no  means;  for  the  Masoretic  number  of  syllables  is  altered,  and  that, 
as  by  a  previous  rule,  or  according  to  an  established  system  of  metre,  which 
existed  before  the  punctuation ;  as  from  this  Psalm  so  ordered  and  illus- 
trated, the  rules  of  metre  are  afterwards  to  be  collected.  "  But  I  do  not 
desert  the  Masoretic  punctuation,  unless  an  erroneous  punctuation  inter- 
feres with  the  metre."  This  would  be  a  sound  argument,  if  it  were  pre- 
viously determined  what  these  rules  of  metre  were.  But  for  what  good 
reason  are  all  trisyllabic  metres  excluded  from  the  Hebrew  poetry  ?  "  Be- 
cause, truly,  if  the  trisyllabic  feet  were  admitted,  a  distinction  of  long 
and  short  syllables  would  have  place  necessarily  in  the  Hebrew  poetry." 
And  why  should  it  not  ?  "  In  Hebrew  poetry  there  is  no  respect  at  all  to 
the  quantity  of  the  syllables."  A  most  extraordinary  assertion,  and  scarcely 
credible  !  But  that  so  it  might  be,  learn  from  the  testimony  of  your  eyes 
and-ears.  "  For  from  this  Psalm  it  is  evident,  that  no  regard  is  paid  to 
quantity  in  the  Hebrew  poetry;  since  in  the  fourth  and  fifth  verses,  not 
to  mention  other  instances,  the  le  and  ve  are  long.  On  the  other  hand,  in  the 
fifteenth  and  twenty-second,  mu  in  semucim  and  hit  in  tehilathu,  are  short." 
That  is,  according  to  Hare,  the  shortest  syllable  may  be  made  use  of  instead 
of  the  longest  (such  indeed  he  acknowledges  them  to  be)  in  his  Trochaic  and 
Iambic  measures ;  and  on  the  other  hand,  the  longest  may  be  introduced  in- 
stead of  the  shortest :  of  which  this  Psalm  affords  the  precedent :  and  on  the 
authority  of  this  precedent,  a  law  is  framed  to  serve  in  all  other  cases  :  and 
when  we  ask,  upon  other  evidence,  the  reason  of  the  fact,  he  refers  us  to  his 
own  authority  and  his  own  example.  For,  indeed,  says  he,  this  is  the  plain 
state  of  the  case  ;  "  that  this,  and  all  that  I  have  urged  upon  this  subject,  is 
undoubtedly  fact,  is  plain  from  the  examples  which  I  have  produced,  and 
must  strike  every  reasonable  person  who  only  looks  into  a  single  page  of  the 
book  of  Psalms."  I  confess  it,  indeed,  most  learned  Prelate,  if  we  look  into 
your  Psalms  :  but  I  fear  we  shall  then  be  very  little  nearer  the  truth ,  since 
it  is  by  no  means  a  decided  point,  that  your  Psalms  are  rightly  and  judi- 
ciously divided  into  verses,  feet,  and  syllables. 

See  "  A  larger  Confutation  of  Bishop  Hare's  Hebrew  Metres,  in  a  Letter 
to  Dr.  Edwards,  London,  1764." 


CONFUTATION  OP  BISHOP  HARE'S  HEBREW  M»TRE.  299 

certain  and  self-evident :  but  not  taking  those  liberties  in  which 
Bishop  Hare  has  prolixly  indulged  himself,  so  as  to  make  the  same 
word  sometimes  Trochaic,  sometimes  Iambic,  sometimes  a  Dissylla- 
ble, and  sometimes  a  Trisyllable  ;  I  may  reasonably  indulge  myself 
in  the  hope,  that  the  candid  reader  will  prefer  my  hypothesis  to  that 
of  Bishop  Hare.  This  at  least  I  trust  I  may  expect,  that  he  will  treat 
them  upon  equal  terms,  and  allow  to  each  the  same  authority,  that 

is NONE  AT  ALL. 

In  the  same  manner  every  hypothesis,  which  pretends  to  define 
the  laws  of  Hebrew  metre,  and  to  prescribe  the  numbers,  the  feet, 
the  scanning  of  the  lines,  may,  I  think,  be  easily  overset :  for  to  that 
hypothesis  another  directly  contrary,  yet  confirmed  by  arguments 
equally  forcible,  may,  I  am  persuaded,  be  successfully  opposed. 

With  regard  to  the  opinion  of  those  who  suppose  the  whole 
art  of  Hebrew  metre  to  consist  in  a  similarity  of  termination  to  each 
verse  ;  though  it  has  acquired  some  popularity  and  authority  in  the 
learned  world,  I  think  it  by  far  the  most  ill-founded  of  all ;  and  I 
think  its  absurdity  so  obvious,  that  with  the  utmost  ease  it  may  be 
detected.  Since  the  endings  of  the  verses  are  defined  in  some  of 
the  alphabetical  poems,  and  since  it  is  manifest,  that  in  these  the 
verses  do  not  end  alike,  that  no  art  or  attention  has  been  bestowed 
upon  that  point,  it  follows  of  course  that  the  art  of  Hebrew  versifica- 
tion does  not  consist  in  making  verses  with  similar  endings. 


NOTES. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  I. 

[A.  p.  9.]     Time  of  commencing  these  Lectures. 

THE  Praelector  of  poetry  at  Oxford  is  obliged  by  the  statute  to 
read  his  inaugural  lecture  the  first  Tuesday  in  the  term  subsequent 
to  his  election ;  and  it  appears  by  the  university  register,  that  Mr. 
Lowth  was  elected  to  the  professorship  on  the  21st  of  May,  1741, 
in  the  vacation  between  Easter  and  Act  term.  As  this  vacation  is 
only  thirteen  days,  commencing  the  Thursday  before  Whitsunday, 
and  ending  the  Wednesday  after  Trinity  Sunday,  the  longest  inter- 
val that  could  possibly  happen  between  his  election  and  his  first  lec- 
ture is  somewhat  less  than  three  weeks  :  It  might  probably  be  much 
shorter.  The  usual  term  of  the  professorship  is  ten  years. 

GREGORY. 

[B.  p.  11.]     Utility  the  ultimate  object  of  poetry. 

Of  poetry  in  the  earlier  stages  of  human  improvement,  of  the 
poetry  which  the  Bible  exhibits,  utility  was  doubtless  not  only  the 
ultimate,  but  the  immediate,  object.  The  poetical  costume  in  which 
the  most  ancient  sages  clothed  their  thoughts,  was  as  much  a  matter 
of  necessity  as  of  choice.  The  feelings,  the  language,  and  the  hab- 
its of  men  were  all  poetical ;  nor  would  any  instructions  in  regard 
to  their  civil  or  moral  duties  have  been  effectual,  unless  presented 
in  a  poetical  form  :  neither  was  it  possible  for  the  sages  of  those 
times  to  exhibit  their  own  feelings  and  speak  their  own  language, 
without  exhibiting  the  feelings  and  speaking  the  language  of  poetry. 
In  the  gradual  advancement  of  society,  the  maxims  of  polity  and  the 
precepts  of  virtue  began  to  assume  a  didactic  form  ;  but  poetry  was 
still  cultivated  for  the  delight  it  afforded,  and,  like  the  rural  beau- 
ties of  spring,  served  the  double  purpose  of  utility  and  pleasure. 
That  poetry,  which,  like  the  paintings  of  the  artist,  is  designed 


304 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  I. 


merely  for  pleasure,  belongs  to  a  later  and  more  luxurious  age  ;  but 
even  this  is  laudable,  provided  the  poet  is  careful  to  make  the  pleas- 
ure innocent,  and  does  not  entirely  lose  sight  of  the  original  design 
of  his  art.  The  God  of  nature  has  created  many  things  in  the  ma- 
terial world,  whose  only  purpose  is  to  afford  delight ;  and  why  may 
not  the  same  object  be  sought  in  some  of  the  productions  of  the  in- 
tellect ?  (Compare  Herder,  Briefe,  Th.  I.  S.  35  ff.)  S. 

[C.  p.  12.]     Authority  of  VirgiVs  Georgics. 

Of  this  work  Seneca  speaks  in  the  following  terms  :  "  Virgilius 
noster,  qui  non  quid  verissime,  sed  quid  decentissime  diceretur,  as- 
pexit ;  nee  agricolas  docere  voluit,  sed  legentes  delectare.  Epist. 
86.  But  Columella,  certainly  a  much  better  authority  in  matters 
of  agriculture,  had  formed  a  very  different  estimate  of  Virgil's  merits. 
He  often  quotes  the  Georgics  with  the  highest  approbation,  and  nev- 
er with  censure.  "  Haec  autem  consequemur,  si  verissimo  vati 
velut  oraculo  crediderimus,  dicenti,  Ventos  et  varium"  Lib.  I.  4. 
"  Utamurque  saepius  auctoritate  divini  carminis."  Lib.  VII.  3. 
Even  in  regard  to  the  only  instance  of  the  alleged  inaccuracy  of 
Virgil,  which  Seneca  adduces,  (the  time  of  sowing  millet) ;  the 
groundlessness  of  the  philosopher's  censures  may  be  seen  by  con- 
sulting Columella,  Lib.  II.  9.  Pliny,  Nat.  Hist.  XVIII.  7.  Pallad. 
III.  3.  LOWTH. 

[D.  p.  16.]     Poetry,  philosophy,  and  history. 

Our  author  does,  indeed,  here  "  seem  to  attribute  too  much  to 
his  favourite  occupation."  The  whole  passage  respecting  the  com- 
parative utility  of  poetry,  philosophy,  and  history,  appears  to  me  to 
savour  rather  of  rhetorical  exaggeration  than  of  sober  truth.  They 
are  each  useful,  and  equally  so  in  their  respective  places ;  and  to 
elevate  one  at  the  expense  of  the  others,  shows  more  of  the  warm 
affections  of  an  enthusiast  than  of  the  severe  accuracy  of  an  instruct- 
er.  If  poetry  be  more  general  and  more  powerful  in  its  influence 
than  philosophy,  philosophy  is  necessary  rightly  to  limit  and  regu- 
late the  dominion  of  poetry :  if  "  poetry  can  range  uncontrolled 
over  the  wide  expanse  of  nature,"  while  history  must  "  confine  it- 
self to  that  path  which  the  stubbornness  of  fact  has  prescribed;" 
then,  though  the  former  may  be  better  adapted  to  excite  a  love  and 
admiration  for  what  is  amiable  and  great,  the  instructions  of  the 
latter  are  at  least  more  proper  to  direct  the  practice  of  it  in  the  real 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  I.  305 


business  of  life  ;  if  poetry  is  the  original  instructress  of  mankind  in 
the  earlier  stages  of  improvement,  yet,  as  society  advances,  and  men 
begin  to  reason  as  well  as  feel,  the  enchantments  of  fable  must  give 
place  to  the  less  pleasing,  but  more  accurate,  teachings  of  philoso- 
phy and  history.  S. 

[E.  p.  18.]     Translation  of  the  Ode. 

Verdant  myrtle's  branchy  pride 

Shall  my  thirsty  blade  entwine  : 
Such,  HARMODIUS,  deck'd  thy  side, 

Such,  ARISTOGITON,  thine. 
Noblest  youths  !  in  islands  blest, 

Not  like  recreant  idlers  dead ; 
You  with  fleet  PELIDES  rest, 

And  with  godlike  DIOMED. 
Myrtle  shall  our  brows  entwine, 

While  the  Muse  your  fa,me  shall  tell ; 
'Twas  at  Pallas'  sacred  shrine, 

At  your  feet  the  tyrant  fell. 
Then  in  Athens  all  was  peace, 

Equal  laws  and  liberty  : 
Nurse  of  arts  and  eye  of  Greece, 

People  valiant,  firm  and  free  !— SIR  WM.  JONES. 

ATHEN^EUS,  Lib  XV.  This  Zxohov  (or  convivial  song)  some 
have  attributed  to  AlcaBus :  but  not  conformably  with  strict  chronolo- 
gy ;  for  Alcaeus  flourished  about  eighty  years  before  the  death  of  Hip- 
parchus.  But  HESYCHIUS  has  preserved  the  name  of  the  author  from 
oblivion,  directly  assigning  the  poem  to  CALLISTRATUS.  This  poem 
was  so  celebrated  at  Athens,  that  it  was  sung  at  almost  every  ban- 
quet, as  we  learn  from  ARISTOPHANES,  AI&QV.  977. 

"  Grim  visag'd  war  shall  never  be  my  guest, 
"  Nor  at  my  table  sing  Harmodius'  praise  : 
"  Such  lawless  riot  mars  our  temp'rate  joys." 

"  He  shall  never  sing  Harmodius  with  me :"  that  is,  he  shall  never 
be  my  guest.  Upon  this  passage  the  SCHOLIAST  :  "  In  their  convi- 
vial meetings  they  sung  a  certain  ballad  of  Harmodius,  which  be- 
gins (frdraTt  AQt*odif  %.  T.  A."  Also  in  the  same  comedy,  1092, 
these  songs  are  enumerated  among  the  other  apparatus  of  the  enter- 
tainment : 

"The  sprightly  dance  :  Harmodius  !  thy  delight." 

There  is  an  allusion  to  the  same,  Avoi?.  633. 

"  My  sword  I'll  bear  hid  in  a  myrtle  branch ; 
"  And  like  Aristogiton  walk  in  arms," 

39 


306  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  1. 


It  is  evident  from  this  ballad,  that  the  conspirators,  when  they  as- 
saulted Hipparchus,  concealed  their  daggers  in  those  myrtle  gar- 
lands, which,  if  I  mistake  not,  were  carried  by  all  who  assisted  at 
the  sacred  rites  of  the  Panathenaic  sacrifice :  and  this  is  indeed 
confirmed  by  the  Scholiast  upon  Aristophanes,  in  the  passage  before 
referred  to :  "  For  these  men,  Harmodius  and  Aristogiton,  hastily 
drawing  their  swords  out  of  the  myrtle  boughs,  fell  furiously  upon 
the  tyrant."  Hence  perhaps  arose  the  custom,  that  whoever  sung 
any  convivial  song  in  company,  always  held  a  branch  of  myrtle  in 
his  hand.  See  PLUTARCH,  Symp.  Quest.  1.  LOWTH. 

[F.  p.  21.]     Use  of  poetry  to  an  orator. 

"  It  will  not  be  inconsistent  with  these  studies  to  amuse  yourself 
with  poetry  : — Tally  indeed  appears  to  me  to  have  acquired  that  lu- 
minous and  splendid  diction  which  he  possessed,  by  occasionally  re- 
sorting to  such  occupations."  QUINCT.  Lib.  X.  5. 

It  may  be  doubted  whether  CICERO  was  indebted  for  his  excel- 
lence as  an  orator  to  the  cultivation  of  poetry.  He  would  have  been 
accounted  but  a  moderate  orator,  if  his  orations  had  only  equalled 
his  poetry,  who 

Antoni  gladios  poterat  contemnere,  si  sic 
Omnia  dixisset. 

I  do  not  expect  from  CICERO  the  polish  and  perfection  of  VIRGIL, 
but  one  might  at  least  have  hoped  to  meet  in  his  verse  some  of  that 
fire  and  fancy  which  appears  in  his  oratory.  The  case  however  is 
far  otherwise,  for  he  appears  not  deficient  in  art,  but  in  nature  ;  in 
that  energy  and  enthusiasm,  which  is  called  the  poetic  furor. 

Upon  very  mature  consideration,  indeed,  I  will  venture  to  profess, 
that  however  poetry  may  contribute  to  form  an  accomplished  orator, 
I  hardly  ever  expect  to  find  the  same  person  excellent  in  both  arts. 
The  language  of  poetry  has  something  in  it  so  different  and  contra- 
ry to  that  of  oratory,  that  we  seldom  find  those  who  have  applied 
much  to  the  one,  rise  above  mediocrity  in  the  other.  The  chief  ex- 
cellence of  an  orator  consists  in  perspicuity,  and  in  such  a  degree  of 
perspicuity  as  is  necessary  to  render  the  composition  intelligible  even 
to  the  common  people  :  but,  though  obscurity  be  not  a  necessary  ad- 
junct of  a  good  poem,  it  must  be  considerably  superior  to  the  lan- 
guage and  comprehension  of  the  vulgar,  to  rank  above  mediocrity. 
The  orator  must  not  deviate  from  the  common  and  beaten  track  of 
language ;  the  poet  must  aim  at  a  happy  boldness  of  diction,  and 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  I.  307 


wander  into  new  paths.  The  orator,  in  order  to  be  generally  under- 
stood, is  necessarily  more  copious  and  prolix  not  only  than  the  poet, 
but  than  all  other  writers ;  the  chief  commendation  of  the  poet  is 
brevity.  A  poem  is  always  enervated  by  circumlocutions,  unless 
new  lights  of  sentiment  and  language  are  thrown  in.  For  these  and 
other  reasons,  I  am  of  opinion,  that  if  a  well-cultivated  genius  for 
poetry  should  apply  earnestly  to  oratory,  he  might  indeed  prove  such 
an  orator  as  would  please  a  learned  audience,  and  not  be  unpleasing 
to  the  populace  ;  but  such  a  man  will  never  prove  a  very  popular 
orator,  on  whom  the  people  shall  gaze  with  admiration  and  rapture, 
and  who  shall  acquire  a  perfect  ascendency  over  all  their  passions  : 
and  he  who  is  by  nature  an  orator,  may  possibly  be  a  poet  for  the  mul- 
titude, or  by  art  and  study,  and  the  imitation  of  the  best  models,  may 
make  a  decent  proficiency,  but  he  never  can  be  a  great  and  divine 
poet.  MICHAELIS. 

The  views  of  Michaelis  may  be  admitted  as  correct  without  de- 
tracting from  the  truth  or  the  value  of  Quintilian's  remark  at  the 
head  of  this  note.  Though  no  man  can  reasonably  expect  to  excel 
both  as  an  orator  and  a  poet,  inasmuch  as  the  intellectual  habits  requi- 
site for  eminence  in  the  one,  are  inconsistent  with  a  high  degree  of 
excellence  in  the  other ;  yet  the  orator  may  derive  great  assistance 
in  his  art  from  the  study  of  poetry.  This  study  is  peculiarly  calcu- 
lated to  give  him  copiousness  and  smoothness  of  diction,  to  lay  open 
to  his  mind  the  richest  stores  of  imagery,  to  warm  the  feelings,  ele- 
vate the  imagination,  and  correct  the  taste  ;  to  give  him  facility  and 
skill  in  the  use  of  langauge  and  the  management  of  the  passions. 

Especially  is  the  study  of  the  sacred  poetry  useful  to  the  student 
of  sacred  eloquence.  Who  knows  all  the  avenues  to  the  human 
heart,  so  well  as  He  who  made  the  heart  ?  And  what  compositions 
have  so  deep  and  permanent  an  effect  on  the  feelings  of  men,  as  the 
poetic  parts  of  the  Bible  when  rightly  understood  ?  He  who  would 
learn  most  effectually  to  arouse  men  from  their  sensuality  and  sin, 
and  excite  them  to  the  love  of  spiritual  things,  must  derive  his  modes 
of  persuasion,  as  well  as  his  principles  of  doctrine,  from  a  thorough 
and  religious  study  of  the  sacred  pages.  S. 

[G.  p.  23.]     Original  design  of  poetry. 

The  most  ancient  poetry  as  well  as  music,  according  to  Plato, 
was  "  that  which  was  addressed  to  the  Deity,  under  the  appellation 
of  hymns."  De  Leg.  Lib.  III.  SUETONIUS  has  illustrated  this  sub- 


308  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  I. 


ject  in  a  very  elegant  manner,  though  he  is  a  little  unfortunate  in 
his  etymology,  a  circumstance  not  uncommon  with  the  old  gramma- 
rians. "  When  first,"  says  he,  "  mankind  emerged  from  a  state  of 
barbarism  into  the  habits  of  civilized  life,  and  began  to  be  acquaint- 
ed in  some  measure  with  their  own  nature  and  that  of  the  gods,  they 
contented  themselves  with  a  moderate  style  of  living,  and  a  language 
just  proportioned  to  their  wants ;  whatever  was  grand  or  magnificent 
in  either,  they  dedicated  to  their  deities.  As,  therefore,  they  built 
temples  more  elegant  by  far  than  their  own  habitations,  and  made 
the  shrines  and  images  of  their  divinities  much  larger  than  the  hu- 
man form  ;  so  they  thought  it  necessary  to  celebrate  them  in  a  style 
of  greater  majesty  than  common ;  in  language  more  splendid,  har- 
monious, and  agreeable.  This  species  of  composition,  because  it 
assumed  a  certain  distinct  form,  was  called  a  poem,  from  the  word 
noiqTyg,  and  those  who  cultivated  it  were  called  pbets."  From  a 
fragment  of  a  work  not  extant,  concerning  poetry,  quoted  by  Isi- 
DORUS,  Orig.  Lib.  viii.  c.  7.  LOWTH. 

It  may  be  doubted,  however,  whether  poetry  were  not  applied  to 
the  purposes  of  war  as  early  as  to  those  of  religion.  Poetry  was  the 
only  species  of  composition  that  existed  in  the  earliest  ages  of  the 
world ;  and  it  would  of  course  be  employed  on  subjects  in  which 
men  felt  the  deepest  interest.  If  man,  in  his  state  of  innocence,  ex- 
pressed his  feelings  in  poetry,  the  hymns  which  he  composed  were 
undoubtedly  of  a  religious  kind  ;  but  as  men  existed  after  the  fall, 
victories  over  their  enemies  and  the  achievements  of  their  heroes 
held  as  strong  possession  of  their  thoughts  as  the  worship  of  their 
gods.  Consequently,  in  the  earliest  poetical  remains  of  all  nations, 
we  find  warlike  and  devotional  songs  going  hand  in  hand  :  the  two 
subjects  indeed  are  almost  constantly  united  in  the  same  poem,  the 
gods  being  more  frequently  praised  for  granting  victory,  than  for  any 
other  blessing.  One  of  the  most  ancient  metrical  productions  now 
extant  is  the  song  of  Moses  by  the  Red  Sea,  in  which  the  children  of 
Israel  return  thanks  to  God  for  the  overthrow  of  their  Egyptian  ene- 
mies. If  we  examine  the  first  poetical  remains  that  occur  on  the 
pages  of  the  Bible,  we  shall  find  none  of  them  to  be  of  a  strictly  de- 
votional character.  The  oldest  specimen  of  poetry  which  the  world 
can  produce,  is  the  address  of  Lamech  to  his  wives  (Gen.  4:  23), 
which  is  certainly  not  devotional,  and  was  probably  occasioned  by 
the  death  of  a  man  in  single  combat  with  Lamech  ;  or,  as  some  in- 
genious critics  have  supposed,  by  the  invention  of  the  sword  or  other 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  II.  309 


metallic  weapon  by  his  son  Tubal-Cain.  (See  Rosenmueller  in  loc. ; 
and  Herder,  Geist,  Th.  I.  S.  309).  The  next  that  occur  are  the 
blessings  of  Isaac  and  Jacob  (Gen.  27:  27—29,  39,  40.  xlix.),  which 
are  testaments  rather  than  hymns.  Passing  onward,  we  next  find 
the  triumphal  song  of  the  Hebrews  at  the  passage  of  the  Red  Sea, 
(Ex.  15:  1 — 19) ;  then  a  war-song,  (Num.  21:  14 — 16)  ;  then  a 
song  that  was  sung  by  the  children  of  Israel  at  the  opening  of  a  well, 
(Num.  21:  17 — 20) ;  then  a  quotation  from  a  war-song  of  the  Amo- 
rites,  celebrating  their  victories  over-Moab,  with  some  additional 
stanzas  by  the  Israelites,  (Num.  21:  27 — 30).  These  are  facts 
which  seem  hardly  to  accord  with  the  theory  of  Lowth.  (See  Lect. 
IV.  Note  F.)  S. 


NOTES  OX  LECTURE  II. 

[A.  p.  27.]     The  Bible  a  proper  subject  of  criticism. 

The  remarks  of  our  author  on  this  point  merit  repeated  perusal 
and  close  attention.     Erroneous  and  vague  notions  of  the  nature  of 
inspiration  have  hidden  the  beauties  of  the  Bible,  darkened  its  mean- 
ing, and  exposed  it  to  the  attacks  of  infidels.     The  biblical  student, 
at  the  very  commencement  of  his  investigations,  must  learn  to  dis- 
tinguish the  things  that  differ;  and  not  ascribe  divinity  to   that 
which  is  necessarily  human.     Paper  and  ink  do  not  change  their 
nature  and  become  imperishable,  because  employed  on  the  word  of 
God ;  men  continue  to  be  men,  though  under  the  influence  of  the 
Holy  Spirit ;  and   human  language  does  not  cease  to  be  human  lan- 
guage, when  used  to  convey  the  messages  of  divine  inspiration.   Our 
Creator  designed  that  the  Bible  should  be  written  by  men,  in  the 
language  of  men,  for  the  use  of  men ;  and  that  it  should  address  it- 
self to  the  common  sense  and  the  common  feelings  of  men.     When 
we  read  it,  therefore,  we  should  read  it  as  men  ;  we  should  judge  of 
it  as  men  ;  we  should  expect  to  find  in  it  the  same  diversity  of  char- 
acter and  the  same  variety  of  expression  which  we  find  among  men  ; 
similar  means  of  acquiring  knowledge  and  communicating  thought, 
like  exhibitions  of  passion,  and  like  weaknesses  and  frailties.     The 
more  we  read  it  in  this  manner,  the  more  likely  shall  we  be  to  at- 
tain its  true  meaning.     We  should  always  remember  that  the  in- 
structions are  all  divine ;  but  that  the  mode  of  instruction  continually 
varies  with  the  instrument  employed  and  the  people  addressed.     We 


310  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  II. 

should  bear  it  in  mind,  that  the  Scriptures  were  not  written  for  our- 
selves alone,  but  for  all  the  nations  of  the" world;  for  people  of  the 
most  diverse  climates,  characters,  and  habits ;  and  if  some  parts  ap- 
pear comparatively  useless  to  us,  we  are  not  therefore  to  infer  that 
there  are  no  human  beings  to  whom  they  may  be  useful :  for  are  we 
the  standard  of  the  whole  world  ?  and  must  God  make  all  the  hu- 
man race  after  our  model  ?  The  Bible  was  not  originally  even  ad- 
dressed to  us,  but  to  the  people  of  the  East ;  and  to  their  habits, 
feelings,  and  modes  of  thought,  is  its  costume  conformed,  and  not 
to  ours.  Let  these  things  be  remembered,  and  let  us  read  the  Bible 
as  men  ought  to  read  a  book  addressed  to  their  common  sense,  and 
not  designed  for  themselves  only,  but  for  all  their  race  ;  and  we  shall 
never  more  be  troubled  about  the  inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  be- 
cause some  of  the  books  were  written  by  authors  now  unknown,  or 
compiled  from  other  works  now  lost ;  or  because  the  pious  charac- 
ters presented  have  human  frailties,  or  wicked  men  are  introduced 
using  the  language  and  exhibiting  the  conduct  of  wicked  men  ;  or 
because  some  sentiments  are  not  conveyed  in  just  the  form  which 
we  should  have  chosen,  or,  there  are  some  things  of  which  we  cannot 
see  the  utility.  All  these  circumstances  necessarily  result  from  the 
design  of  the  Bible,  as  a  book  committed  to  the  hands  of  men  for  the 
common  use  of  all  the  human  race  ;  and  it  is  by  neglecting  to  con- 
sider them,  that  Christians  are  led  to  doubt  and  infidels  embolden- 
ed to  scoff.  Sober  criticism  alone  will  enable  us  to  make  the  requi- 
site distinction  ;  steadily  to  believe  the  truth,  and  effectually  to  de- 
fend it.  (Compare  Herder,  Briefe,  Th.  I.  SS.  1—4,  198.)  S. 

[B.  p.  28.]     Ancient  opinion  respecting  the  divine  origin  of  poetry. 

It  is  well  known  that,  throughout  the  ancient  world,  poets  were 
called  prophets,  and  poetry  was  supposed  to  derive  its  origin  from  di- 
vine inspiration.  Our  author  here  intimates  that  this  opinion  might 
have  orignated  in  some  obscure  traditions  respecting  the  really  di- 
vine origin  of  the  most  ancient  poetry,  the  poetry  of  the  Bible.  This 
may  be  true  :  but  there  is  another  mode  of  accounting  for  the  fact, 
which  ought  not  to  be  overlooked.  This  is  very  ably  exhibited  in 
the  following  quotation,  which  I  am  unwilling  to  translate,  because  I 
know  not  how  I  can  do  it  without  suffering  the  spirit  of  the  piece  to 
evaporate.  S. 

"  duicunque  ad  poeseos  originem  rationemque  germanam  res- 
picere  voluerit,  is  agnoscet,  excelsum  divinumque  aliquid  natura  hu- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  II.  >  311 


jus  facultatis  contineri,  paucis  tantum  iisque  excellentissimis  ingeniis. 
concessum.  Quum  enim  Deus  omni  suo  operi  pulcritudinem  formam- 
que  perfectam,  et  in  varietate  incredibilem  ordinem,  coiisensumque 
omnium  partium  ad  unum  finem  altissime  expresserit,  quam  uno 
nomine  harmoniam  vocare  licet,  atque  ita  suae  perfectionis  quamdam 
quasi  umbram  et  effigiem  quasi  in  speculo  exhibuerit,  noluit  omnes 
homines  tarn  admirabilis  rei  esse  spectatores  stupidos  otiososque. 
Igitur  indidit  paucorum  quorundam  mentibus  vim  et  virtutem,  qua 
hanc  operis  sui  perfectionem  non  tantum  perciperent  et  observarent, 
sed  etiam  persentiscerent,  eique  singulari  quodam  animi  motu  sen- 
suque  responderent.  Quern  animi  consensum  et  quasi  concentum 
cum  Dei  operibus,  homo  imaginandi  facultate  ad  actum  vitamque  de- 
ducens,  et  oratione  concitata,  numerosa,  atque  ad  harmoniam  com- 
posita  experimens,  poeta,  id  est,  Dei  imitator,  creator,  dictus  fuit." 

"  Sed  haec  quidem,  ne  forte  nonnullis  audaciora  et  subobscura 
videantur,  paullo  diligentius  persequenda  sunt.  Attendite  igitur, 
quid  sit  illud,  quo  poeta  differat  a  philosopho.  Ambo  enim  contem- 
platione  operis  Dei  percelluntur,  sed  dispari  utetque  modo  et  effectu. 
Est  autem  harmonia  ilia  et  pulcritudo,  quam  diximus,  conspicua,  tarn 
in  universe  Dei  opificio,  quod  vocamus  naturam  vel  mundum,  quern 
et  Graeci  xoopov  dicentes  pulcritudinem  simul  eius  aptamque  com- 
positionem  significant,  quam  in  partibus,  quibus-mundus  constat, 
quae  singulae  in  suo  genere  perfectae  et  sinibus  suis  respondentes 
creatae  sunt,  imo  in  toto  regimine  humani  generis,  omnibusque  et 
singulis,  quae  Dei  providentia  efficit,  quorumque  homines  spectato- 
res esse  voluit.  Horum  igitur  admiratio  philosophum  impellit,  ut  in 
rerum  causas  inquirat,  naturae  vires  perscrutetur,  multa  inter  se  con- 
ferat,  multa  eruat,  quibus  eorum,  quae  sunt,  rationem  reddere,  de- 
que iis  iudicare  possit.  Aliud  maiusque,  poetae  est  munus.  Scili- 
cet, cum  in  quibuslibet  rebus  percipit  pulcritudinem,  magnitudinem, 
varietatem,  simplicitatem,  cum  agnoscit  Deum,  excitatur  in  eius  ani- 
mo  non  tantum  admiratio,  sed  maxime  vis  ilia  singularis  naturae  re- 
spondens,  de  qua  diximus.  Mox  altiores  in  pectore  surgunt  motus  : 
exaestuat  imaginandi  vis,  a  rerum  praesentium  sensusque  fugien- 
tium  angustiis  se  extollit  ad  universum  :  quae  in  oculis  posita  sunt, 
exaggerat,  ornat,  multis  ac  miris  modis  auget,  miscet,  componit, 
inde  sibi  creat  mundum,  eumque  vita  et  actu  animat :  quod  specta- 
culum  mente  conceptum  tanquam  verum,  aliis  ut  testibus  et  specta- 
toribus  depingit  et  in  ipsa  ilia  pictura,  dum  verbis  utitur  velut  colori- 


312  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 

bus,  harmoniam  pulcrituJinemque  universo  a  creatore  impressam, 
forma  et  modulatione  carminis  imitatur." 

"  Videtis  iam,  quaenam  sit  poesi  vis  et  indoles  ab  ipso  Deo  tribu- 
ta.  Nam  hominem  ad  magna  et  aeterna  destinatum,  cuiusque  adeo 
omnem  excellentiam  non  capit  angusta  huius  vitae  rerumque  adspec- 
tabilium  scena,  erigit,  et  ex  hisce  vinculis  eductum  in  immensis 
phantasiae  carnpis,  tanquam  in  regno  suo,  exspatiari  iubet.  Ita  re- 
rum  praesentium  despicientia,  malorum  oblivio,  generosiores  animi 
motus,  delectatio  exquisita,  futurae  felicitatis  aeternae  spes  sensus- 
que  a  poesi  excitantur  et  nutriuntur." 

"  Fuit  igitur  poeseos  eadem  origo  quae  religionis,  et  talem  habet 
cum  ea  societatem  et  cognationem,  ut  sine  religione  aliqua  nulla  sit 
poe'sis.  Nam  perceptio  ilia  pulcritudinis  huius  mundi,  quae  poetae 
propria  est,  animum  ad  naturae  opifieem,  ut  ab  umbrae  et  imaginis 
contemplatione  ad  ipsum  perfectum  exemplar,  evehit.  Quare  et  an- 
tiquissimis  temporibus,  ac  velut  a  suis  inde  incunabulis,  poe'sis' in 
celebrandis  Dei  laudibus  viguisse  reperitur.  Neque  postea,  cum  ea- 
dem ad  hominum  delectationem  et  exprimendos  quoscunque  animi 
motus,  amorem,  iram,  dolorem,  tamquam  a  coelo  descenderet,  omnem 
illam  maiestatem  suam  deposuit.  Nam  quaecunque  canit  poesis, 
iis  nobilitatem  divinitatemque  aliquam  attribuit,  nee  quisquam  poe- 
tae sanctum  illucl  nomen  meretur,  cuius  animus  ad  naturae  Deique 
sensum  se  obfirmavit." 

S.  F.  I.  RAUIUS  de  poeticae  facultatis  excellentia  et  perfectione 
spectata  in  tribus  poetarum  principibus,  scriptore  Jobi,  Homero  et 
Ossiano.  Lugd.  Batav.  1800.  p.  73  seqq. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 

[A.  p.  33.]    Poetic  diction  of  the  Hebrews. 

The  poetical  particles,  which  the  grammarians  in  general  call 
paragogic,  (or  redundant)  are  as  follows  :  1  added  to  nouns  :  Numb, 
xxiv.  3.  Ps.  1.  10.  Ixxix.  2.  cxiv.  8.  civ.  11,  20.  Isai.  Ivi.  9,  (it  occurs 
here  twice.)  Zeph.  ii.  14. 

"  -Jna  Numb.  xxiv.  3.  as  also  irpn,  Psal.  1.  10,  etc.  seems  to  be  a 
pleonasmus  peculiar  to  the  Syriac.  For  thus  it  is  common  for  that 
people  to  express  themselves  :  Tnn  JTD,  the  son  Ms  of  David, 
Matth.  i.  1.  *On»T  SraiB,  the  countenance  his  of  the  Lord,  Is.  i.  20. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III.  313 


Psal.  cxiv.  8.  It  was  formerly  read  ^:^72^,  as  appears  from 
the  Septuagint,  \tfA,vag  vdaxwv"     H. 

t  added  to  nouns,  adverbs,  prepositions,  is  common  in  the  poets  : 
also  to  the  participles,  Benoni,  sing.  masc.  and  fern.  Gen.  xlix.  11. 
Psal.  ci.  5.  Prov.  xxviii.  16.  Jer.  xxii.  23.  xlix.  16.  li.  13.  Ezek. 
xxvii.  3.  This,  however,  the  Masorites  have  sometimes  rashly  ex- 
punged. 

Concerning  the  1,  when  added  to  verbs  in  the  second  pers.  fern. 
sing.  pret.  I  have  sometimes  my  doubts  whether  it  be  an  error  or 
not.  Certainly  the  Masorites  are  of  opinion  that  it  should  always  be 
expunged.  See  Jer.  xiii.  21.  xxii.  23.  xxxi.  21,  and  Ezek.  xvi. 
where  it  occurs  eleven  times.  Now  it  is  not  in  the  least  probable 
that  in  one  chapter  the  same  error  should  so  frequently  take  place, 
"  But  in  these  eleven  places  many  MSS.  confirm  the  Masoretic  Ke- 
ri,*  for  the  ^  is  wanting."  K.  It  may  also  be  a  Syriac  gloss,  which 
is  the  opinion  of  CAPPEL,  Crit.  Sac.  Lib.  iii.  c.  xiii.  8.  Though  there 
is  a  passage,  where  it  occurs  in  the  same  person  masc.  VHQ8  "O, 
"  because  thou  hast  said,"  Psal.  Ixxxix.  3.  So  indeed  almost  all  the 
old  interpreters,  except  the  Chaldean  paraphrast,  have  taken  it  ;  and 
rightly,  indeed,  if  regard  is  to  be  paid  to  the  context  or  the  parallel- 
ism of  the  sentences.  But  this  I  rather  esteem  an  error,  though  the 
Masorites  have  not  noted  it  as  such. 

"  Verbs  in  which  the  ^  is  added  to  the  second  pers.  fern.  sing. 
pret.  follow  the  Syriac  and  Arabic  form."  H. 

1ft  for  0,  or  fifl,  occurs  frequently  in  the  Hebrew  poetry.  See 
Ps.  ii.  3,  4,  5.  where  it  appears  five  times  :  sometimes  in  the  sin- 
gular for  i  ;  see  Isai.  xliv.  15.  liii.  8.  Job  xx.  23.  xxii.  2.  xxvii.  23. 
Ps.  xi.  7.  It  is  very  often  merely  paragogic,  or  redundant.  1£!D 
simply  seems  to  be  altogether  poetical;  it  occurs  in  Neh.  ix.  11. 
and  is  taken  from  the  song  of  Moses,  Exod.  xv.  5.  —  It  is,  however, 
riot  the  same  with  prefixes  or  suffixes. 

"  Isai.  liii.  8.  •)&]?.  The  Septuagint  in  this  place  is  i^tfiy  ft? 
<&avuTOt>  (he  was  led  unto  death)  :  in  this  it  follows  the  Arabic  ver- 
sion, which  reads  mjaV  H. 

Of  these  particles,  which  I  call  poetical,  there  occur  very  few  exam- 
ples in  the  prose  parts  of  Scripture  ;  indeed  I  do  not  know  that  there 
are  any  more  than  the  following  :  1,  Gen.  i.  24.  but  instead  of  1DVT 
y^N,  the  Samaritan  copy  has  ^tt  nrpft,  as  it  is  also  expressed  in 


A  Masoretic  term  for  a  various  reading. 

40 


314 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 


the  Hebrew  in  the  following  verse,  i,  Gen.  xxxi.  39.  twice  :  but  it 
is  also  wanting  in  the  Samaritan  copy  :  although  it  may  possibly  be 
meant  for  a  pronominal  affix.  Also  in  Ruth  iii.  3,  4.  three  times  ; 
iv.  5.  and  in  2  Kings  iv.  23.  "  But  in  all  these  places,  many  MSS. 
confirm  the  Masoretic  Keri ;  for  1  is  wanting."  K.  Lastly,  173, 
Exod.  xxiii.  31.  but  instead  of  lamina,  the  Septuagint  and  the  Vul- 
gate read  SVnzniJ,  and  the  context  favours  this  reading. 

Hitherto  perhaps  might  be  referred  the  ft  and  1  paragogic,  and 
the  relative  '15,  which  occur  more  frequently  in  the  poets  than  else- 
where. 

These  are  most,  if  not  all  of  them,  examples  of  anomalies,  which 
serve  to  distinguish  particularly  the  poetic  dialect.  To  demon- 
strate more  fully,  how  freely  they  are  made  use  of  by  the  sacred  poets, 
I  shall  annex  a  specimen,  which  Abarbanel  exhibits  as  collected 
from  one  short  poem,  namely,  the  song  of  Moses.  "  You  may  ob- 
serve," says  he,  "  in  this  poem,  words  sometimes  contracted  for  the 
sake  of  the  measure,  and  sometimes  lengthened  and  extended  by  ad- 
ditional letters  and  syllables,  according  as  the  simple  terms  may  be 
redundant  or  deficient.  The  letters  which  in  this  canticle  are  su- 
peradded,  are  as  follows  :  the  Vau  and  Yod  twice  in  the  word  173 ^IDID"1 
for  in  reality  SDD  would  have  been  quite  sufficient  :  the  Yod  is  also 
added  in  *m»,x: :  the  Vau  in  Iftb^iO ;  the  Vau  in  ua'iB'mn :  the 
Vau  also  in  1E05  ;  in  la^b^n  ;  in  Ifcir.K  :  the  Thau  in  ftna1^." 
(In  truth  this  form  of  nouns  appears  to  be  altogether  poetical ;  many 
examples  of  which  may  be  found  in  Glass.  Phil.  Sac.  p.  269 ;  all  of 
them,  however,  from  the  poetic  and  prophetic  books.)  "  The  Vau 
in  lafiTsn  ;  in  lastsn.  The  deficient  are  Yod  in  J-p  mail ;  so  in 
laatban  for  cna  aban ':  The  Vau  in  nbft3  for  inbfta  ;  so  also  the 
word  nab  is  deficient  in  the  verse  p35  ^IB"1  b3  121E3 ;  for  the  prince 
of  the  prophets  cannot  be  suspected  of  erring  in  grammatical  or 
orthographical  accuracy  ;  but  the  necessity  of  the  verse  and  a  pro- 
per regard  to  harmony  so  required  it."  ABARB.  in  Mantissa  Dissert, 
ad  Libr.  COSRI  a  BUXTORFIO  edit.  Basil,  1660,  p.  412.  To  these 
examples  one  might  add  from  the  same  canticle  173  twice  in  173D ;  2 
epithentic  in  iftaaaitt,  paragogic  in  •jiTS'V. 

Concerning  the  glosses  or  foreign  words,  which  occur  in  the  He- 
brew poetry ;  in  the  present  state  of  the  Hebrew  language,  it  is  dif- 
ficult to  pronounce  on  the  ruins,  as  it  were,  of  neighbouring  and  con- 
temporary dialects :  since  possibly  those  words  which  are  commonly 
taken  for  Chaldaic  (for  instance)  might  have  been  common  to  both 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III.  315 

languages  ;  on  the  contrary,  some  of  those,  which  more  rarely  occur, 
and  the  etymology  of  which  we  are  ignorant  about,  may  have  been 
borrowed  from  the  neighbouring  dialects.     Since,  however,  there 
are  some  words  which  more  frequently  occur  in  the  poetical  remains, 
and  which   are  not  elsewhere  to  be  found  but  in  the  Chaldee ; 
we  may  reasonably  conjecture  concerning  these,  that  they  have  been 
introduced  into  the  Hebrew,  or  at  least,  after  becoming  obsolete  in 
common  language,  might  be  again  made  use  of:  such  are  the  follow- 
ing: "•a(ason),  B'tfp  (truth),  im)  (he  increased),  t"DO  (he  praised), 
S)pT  (he  lifted  up),  pl3?  (in  the  Hebrew  pis),  (he  pressed),  etc.  Ob- 
serve Moses,  however,  in  the  exordium  of  his  last  benediction,  Deut. 
xxxiii.  has  he  not  also  frequently  admitted  of  Chaldaisms  1    What  is 
TtriN  ?  which  again  occurs  ver.  21.    What  is  ain  1  in  both  form  and 
sense  Chaldaic.     What  m  ?    a  word  scarcely  received  into  com- 
mon use  among  the  Hebrews  till  after  the  Babylonish  captivity  ;  es- 
pecially since  the  Hebrew  abounded  in  synonymous  terms,  expres- 
sive of  the  Law  of  God.     (But  perhaps  this  last  word  in  this  place 
is  rightly  suspected  to  be  an  error.     See  KENNICOTT,  Dissert.  I.  on 
the  Hebrew  Text,  p.  427 ;  and  HOUBIGANT  in  loc.)     Isaiah,  howev- 
er, elegantly  adopts  the  Chaldaic  form,  speaking  of  Babylon,  in  the 
word  FQfTiJa,  which  in  the  Hebrew  would  be  ranTH,  Chap.  xiv.  4. 
Not  less  appositely  on  the  same  subject  does  the  Psalmist  introduce 
the  word  la^in,  Psalm  cxxxvii.  3,  which  is  the  Chaldaic  for  la^bllS, 
as  the  Chaldean  paraphrast  himself  allows,  who  renders  it  by  the  sy- 
nonymous term  JOTTS,  as  elsewhere  he  renders  the  word  VVo ;   (see 
Ezek.  xxvi.  12.  xxix.  19.  xxxviii.  12,  13.)  nor  indeed  do  the  other 
interpreters  produce  any  thing  to  the  purpose.     Some  instances  of 
grammatical  anomalies  in  the  glosses  have  been  detected  ;  such  are 
the  following,  Syriac  or  Chaldaic  :  *3  for  "f ,  Psal.  cxvi.  thrice ;  ciii. 
five  times ;  also  in  Jer.  xi.   15.     VII  for  1*,  Psal.  cxvi.  12.    *p  as  a 
termination  plur.  nom.  masc.  for  tP,  Job  iv.  2.   xxiv.  22.   xxxi.  10. 
and  frequently  elsewhere  ;  also  Prov.  xxxi.  3.     Lam.  iv.  3.     Ezek. 
xxvi.  18.     Mic.  iii.  12. 

"  nnN,  the  Samaritan  has  intt,  in  the  Arabic  form.  ±in,  rtWl33, 
are  Chaldaic  as  well  as  Arabic,  l^bbtn,  but  this  word  seems  to 
have  followed  the  etymology  of  the  Arabic  verb  b^n,  he  bound,  he 
led  captive :  whence  the  Septuagint  ctitoyayovTfS  *J|wa£ ;  and  the 
Chaldaic  fcOtti,  he  carried  away  captive."  LOWTH  and  HUNT. 


316  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 

Hebrew  Dialects. 

That  the  Hebrew  language,  like  the  Greek,  was  divided  into 
various  dialects,  no  one  who  has  investigated  the  subject,  can  doubt. 
For  four  hundred  years  a  part  of  the  nation  lived  in  Egypt,  under 
the  influence  of  the  climate,  customs,  and  language  of  that  country; 
while  the  remaining  part  resided  among  the  Nomadic  tribes  of  Ara- 
bia and  Palestine,  and  were  subject  to  an  influence  of  a  totally  dif- 
ferent kind.  In  such  circumstances,  it  was  impossible  that  the  lan- 
guage of  the  different  parts  of  the  nation  should  remain  in  all  res- 
pects the  same.  After  the  Hebrews  had  settled  in  Palestine,  cir- 
cumstances still  contributed  to  make  a  diversity  of  dialects  in  the 
several  districts ;  for  those  who  lived  at  the  north  and  bordered  on 
the  Syrians,  were  under  a  very  different  influence  from  those  who 
lived  at  the  south  and  bordered  on  the  Arabians  and  Philistines  : 
and  it  should  be  recollected  that  there  was  then  no  press,  no  period- 
ical or  popular  literature,  to  counteract  the  tendency  to  provincial- 
isms. Thus  in  Judg.  12:  6,  we  find  that  the  Ephraimites  pronounc- 
ed nlrac  for  nlrztt? ;  the  words  ^y ,  ob# ,  and  yby ,  are  all  verbs  of 
the  same  meaning  and  the  same  grammatical  form,  but  varying  in 
the  final  consonant  in  conformity  to  different  dialects.  Moses  uses 
fcttn  and  i?3  for  sTn  and  iTi'W  (Gen.  3:  15.  24:  14);  ^ttn  for 
j-jVjN  (Gen.  19:  8),  etc. ;  and  the  conversation  between  David  and 
Abigail  (1  Sam.  xxv.)  affords  proof  of  a  difference  of  dialect  too  pal- 
pable to  escape  the  dullest  ear.  Various  other  examples  might  be 
adduced,  but  these  are  sufficient  for  our  present  purpose. 

Among  these  various  dialects,  some  one  (according  to  the  anal- 
ogy of  other  languages)  would  be  most  prevalent  as  the  language  of 
books,  and,  with  the  occasional  admission  of  words  from  other  dia- 
lects according  to  the  circumstances  of  different  writers,  would  be- 
come the  language  of  literature  in  distinction  from  that  of  popular 
intercourse.  Of  this  difference  between  the  popular  and  literary 
dialect  we  have  an  example  in  Ex.  16;  15.  When  the  children  of 
Israel  saw  the  manna,  they  said  :  atl  n  ]5a ,  what  is  this  1  But  in 
the  written  language  of  the  Hebrews,  the  word  for  what  is  uniform- 
ly n£  ,  and  ]73  in  this  sense  is  Aramaean.  (See  Eichhorn,  Einlei- 
tung  in  das  alt'e  Test.,  Band  I.  SS.  71—87).  S. 

Versification. 

These  remarks  may  throw  some  light  on  the  poetic  diction  of  the 
Hebrews.     It  is  the  design  of  the  poet  to  elevate  his  style  by  a  seJec- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III.  317 


tion  of  words  that  have  not  been  vulgarized  by  popular  use  ;  and  the 
nature  and  object  of  his  composition  give  him  greater  liberties  in 
this  respect  than  are  allowed  to  other  writers.  The  Greeks  have 
availed  themselves  of  this  license  to  a  greater  extent  than  the  writers 
of  any  other  nation  ;  for  their  language  exhibits  an  unexampled 
richness  of  dialect.  Poets  use  this  privilege  most  frequently  ;  histo- 
rians occasionally  resort  to  it  ;  but  didactic  writers  and  orators  sel- 
dom venture  upon  it,  because,  aiming  at  popular  instruction  or  popu- 
lar effect,  they  are  obliged  to  conform  their  language  more  to  popu- 
lar usage.  This  liberty  is  taken  by  the  Hebrew  writers  ;  and  we 
accordingly  find  some  peculiar  forms  in  the  Hebrew  language  com- 
mon to  the  historian  and  the  poets,  but  used  more  frequently  by  the 
latter  than  the  former  ;  and  some  which  seem  appropriated  to  poe- 
try. The  privilege  in  question  extends  itself  not  only  to  contempo- 
raneous dialects  of  the  same  language,  but  particularly  to  antique 
forms  ;  and  often  to  forms  borrowed  from  foreign  languages.  (See 
Lowth's  Note  above). 

Of  the  forms  common  to  the  historians  and  poets,  the  use  of  the 
paragogic  letters  1,  •>,  and  a,  may  be  mentioned  as  examples.  (Com- 
pare Gen.  1:  24.  31:  39.  3:  4,  et  al.  with  Ps.  50:  10.  Is.  56:  9.  Ezek. 
xvi.  Ps.  101:  5.  Prov.  28:  16.  Is.  26:  11).  These  forms,  however, 
seldom  occur  in  prose,  except  in  the  more  ancient  historical  books  ; 
and  they  appear  for  the  most  part  to  be  archaisms  adopted  by  the 
poets. 

Of  the  diction  appropriate  to  poetry,  the  most  concise  and  satis- 
factory view  which  I  have  ever  seen,  is  given  by  Professor  Stuart, 
in  his  Hebrew  Chrestomathy  (p.  195),  to  which  the  student  is  refer- 
red. I  will  here  add  a  list  of  a  few  poetic  words,  with  the  corres- 
ponding words  of  a  cognate  language,  that  the  reader  may  see  that 
the  Hebrew  poets,  as  well  as  the  Greek,  made  a  free  use  of  dialects. 

Poetic.  Cognate. 

God  nV?N 

v: 

man  -in  3  a 

.... 

path 
to  come 


man 

to  be  rnri 


318  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 


Poetic.  Cognate. 

x    7 

show  ill  h 


see  nin  !VM 


word 

war 

to  descend 

to  pass  over 

to  do 

city 

to  kill 

(See  Gesenius,  Woerterbuch,Vorrede,  S.  47;  and  Geschichte  der  Hebr. 
Sprache  und  Schrift,  S.  21  ff.) 

It  may  be  proper  to  add,  that  some  of  the  poetic  forms  are  oc- 
casionally  found  (though  rarely)  in  prose ;  and  that  they  most  fre- 
quently occur  in  the  lyric  poetry. 

"  The  peculiar  diction  of  Hebrew  poetry,"  says  Professor  Stuart, 
"  is  displayed  in  the  choice  of  words ;  in  the  meaning  assigned  to 
them ;  and  in  the  forms  which  it  gives  them. 

(a)  The  choice  of  words.     Thus      13N!  instead  of  D*1N ,  man; 
!nnN  instead  of  NTS,  to  come;  tt£E  instead  of  "Q7  -word;  Dip   in- 

T     T  T       •  IT*  V|V 

stead  of  Dbi?,  former  time  ;  DTnPl  instead  of  0^73  ,  water. 

(b)  The  meaning  of  words.     E.g.  -pritf  strong  for   God;  '•pajj 
strong,  for  bull;  SrVTVl1?  the  only,  the  darling,  for  life ;  P)p/P  Joseph, 
for  the  nation  of  Israel,  etc. 

(c)  The  forms  of  words.    E.g.  ipbtt  instead  of  DVrbN ;,   God; 
i-Jin  instead  of  n*n ,  to  be;  DTOE2  instead  of  t^Tay,  nations;  ni3U3 

'TT  TT'  -T-J  •-' 

instead  of  t3^3'r,  years  ;  rri£^  instead  of  DW  ,  days ;  ^ft  instead  of 
*J73  ,from ;  ^bfV  instead  of  ^jb^ ,  he  will  go. 

(d)  In  poetry,  several  grammatical  forms  are  peculiar.     E.  g. 
paragogic  tt_  is  suffixed  to  nouns  in  the  absolute  state  ;  i_  and  "*_ 
are  suffixed  to  nouns  in  regimen  ;  T;B_  suffix  is  used  instead  of  D_ 
them,  their ;  ^n"1—  and  Vp_  instead  of  V._  his ;  ^D^—   fern,  instead 
of  ^p__  thine  ;  IV.  and  ^_  plur.  instead  of  BV. ." 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 


Dr.  Lowth  intimates  that  these  peculiarities  of  diction  were 
adopted  by  the  Hebrew  poets,  as  by  the  poets  of  ofher  actions,  that 
they  might  conform  their  sentences  to  the  laws  of  versification. 
This  may  be  true ;  but  the  supposition  does  not  appear  necessary  to 
account  for  the  fact.  The  trammels  of  versification  are  never  the 
only  cause  of  the  peculiarities  of  poetic  diction.  They  are  oftener 
chosen  for  the  sake  of  ornament  or  harmony ;  to  give  an  air  of  anti- 
quity and  grandeur  to  the  style,  which  may  distinguish  it  from  the 
language  of  common  life ;  and  to  enable  the  poet  to  give  vent  to  his 
excited  feelings,  which  he  might  labour  in  vain  to  express  in  the 
customary  way.  The  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  is  the  poetry  of  a 
primitive  and  simple  nation,  a  nation  of  shepherds ;  it  is  peculiarly 
the  poetry  of  lofty  conceptions  and  excited  feelings,  which  could 
scarcely  be  confined  by  the  trammels  of  verse  ;  and  to  attribute  to  it 
a  regular  system  of  versification,  seems  to  be  attributing  to  it  that 
which  is  incompatible  with  its  nature,  and  an  invention  of  much  later 
times.  Is  it  likely  that  the  most  ancient  people  in  the  world,  whose 
minds  were  in  a  state  of  childlike  excitement,  would  think  of  count- 
ing syllables  and  measuring  lines,  while  struggling  to  express  the 
simple  feelings  of  their  hearts  1  The  regular  return  of  the  same 
measure  seems  to  have  been  first  introduced  in  order  to  adapt  poetry 
to  music  ;  but  in  ancient  times  the  poet  and  the  musician  were  the 
same  ;  the  author  of  the  song  was  the  composer  of  the  music  which 
accompanied  it ;  and  each  piece  having  its  appropriate  harmony, 
there  was  no  necessity  for  that  regular  return  of  the  same  measure, 
which  is  indispensable  where  different  words  are  to  be  sung  to  the 
same  tune.  Hence,  in  all  nations,  there  is  poetry  and  song  long  be- 
fore there  is  a  regular  system  of  versification ;  and  the  minstrel  al- 
ways precedes  the  versifier  and  the  musician. 

It  is  beyond  all  doubt  that  there  was  a  certain  rythmical  confor- 
mation of  sentences  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  (and  sometimes,  indeed, 
something  like  rhyme  may  be  discovered,  as  in  Samson's  riddle, 
Judg.  14:  14.) ;  but  this  was  free  and  unfettered,  the  offspring  of 
nature,  not  of  art,  and  consisting  principally  of  a  parallelism  of  sen- 
timent, or  thought ;  of  which  no  author  has  treated  more  satisfacto- 
rily than  Lowth,  (see  Lect.  XVIII — XX).  It  is  true  that  there  is 
regular  versification  in  Arabic,  the  sister  dialect  of  the  Hebrew  ;  but 
this  is  evidently  of  comparatively  recent  origin.  Sir  William  Jones, 
indeed,  pronounces  it  very  ancient  (Comment,  p.  60) ;  but  he  him- 
self allows  that  the  first  Arabic  writer  on  the  subject  of  verse  is 


820  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 


Ferahid,  who  lived  in  the  tenth  century  of  the  Christian  era.  Does 
it  seem  probable,  then,  that  the  art  could  have  existed  long  before 
the  time  of  Christ?  Pococke  (Spec.  Hist.  Arab.  p.  ICO)  affirms,  on 
the  authority  of  two  Arabic  writers,  Alsephad  and  Jalaloddin,  that 
the  art  was  recent  among  them  :  and  this  opinion  is  confirmed  by 
the  fact  that  the  Arabic  prosody  depends  on  the  nunnation,  or 
doubling  of  the  final  syllable  ;  an  invention  of  no  very  ancient  date. 
(See  Eichhorn  on  Jones's  Comment,  p.  61.  Note). 

It  does  seem,  that  if  there  had  been  a  regular  system  of  versifi- 
cation among  the  ancient  Hebrews,  some  traces  of  it  would  still  be 
perceptible  ;  but  it  has  hitherto  eluded  all  the  attempts  of  the  most 
able  and  zealous  inquirers  to  detect  it.  Some  of  the  Rabbins  and 
Christian  fathers  have  maintained  that  the  Hebrew  poetry  pos- 
sesses all  the  variety  and  regularity  of  metre  exhibited  by  the  Greek  ; 
but  they  have  offered  no  proof,  and  their  usual  mode  of  investigat- 
ing and  pronouncing  on  such  subjects  affords  us  but  little  security 
for  the  correctness  of  their  decision.  The  most  recent  and  able 
writers  on  the  subject  are  Greve,  Sir  William  Jones,  Anton,  and 
Bellerman.  The  two  former  make  the  metre  depend  on  the  quanti- 
ty or  syllabic  measure,  after  the  analogy  of  the  Arabic  and  Greek ; 
while  the  latter  rest  it  on  the  accents,  assuming  the  tone-syllable  to 
be  always  long,  and  the  others  short.  The  last  is  the  most  plausi- 
ble theory,  as  the  train  of  accents  is  undoubtedly  more  ancient  than 
the  Masoretic  punctuation.  (See  E.  J.  Greve,  Ultima  Capita  Libri 
Jobi,  etc.  Davent.  1788-91,  P.  I.  II.  Sir  William  Jones,  Com- 
ment, pp.  55 — 59.  C.G.  Anton,  Conjectura  de  Metro  Hebraeorum, 
etc.  Lips.  1770.  4to.  Bellerman,  Versuch  ueber  die  Metrik  der  He- 
braeer,  etc.  Berlin,  1813,  8vo).  The  opinion  which  I  have  adopt- 
ed, is  on  the  whole  favoured  by  Lowth  ;  and  it  is  strongly  defended 
by  Michaelis,  Herder,  and  De  Wette.  (Michaelis  and  Rosenmueller 
in  loc. ;  Herder,  Briefe,  Th.  I.  SS.  150—51,  and  Geist,  Th.  I.  SS. 
18 — 25 ;  De  Wette,  Commentar  ueber  die  Ps.  Einleit.  SS  46 — 
67).  S. 

[B.  p.  34.]     Hebrew  pronunciation  and  quantity. 

That  it  is  impossible  now  to  ascertain  the  real  quantity  of  He- 
brew syllables  and  the  true  rhythm  of  Hebrew  poetry,  is  sufficiently 
proved  by  the  very  unsatisfactory  and  inconsistent  results  to  which 
all  learned  men  have  come,  who  have  attempted  to  investigate  the 
subject.  I  am  inclined  to  think,  however,  that  Lowth  is  too  severe 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  Til.  321 


in  his  remarks  on  the  Masoretic  punctuation.  The  Hebrew  ceased 
to  be  a  living  language  sometime  during  the  captivity  (Neh.  8:  7,  8), 
perhaps  500  B.  C. ;  but  as  the  book  of  the  law  was  constantly  read 
to  the  people  by  the  priests  in  the  original,  it  is  highly  probable  that 
the  ancient  pronunciation  was  preserved,  with  a  good  degree  of  pu- 
rity, in  the  sacerdotal  class.  This  supposition  is  confirmed  when  we 
consider  the  high  veneration  of  the  Jews  for  every  thing  connected 
with  their  law ;  their  strong  attachment  to  its  most  minute  details ; 
and  the  hatred  and  contempt  with  which  they  were  viewed  by  other 
nations,  which  tended  only  to  unite  them  more  firmly  among  them- 
selves, and  increase  their  love  for  every  thing  which  they  could  call 
their  own.  Though  the  present  system  of  vowel-points  was  not  com- 
pleted till  about  the  eighth  century  of  the  Christian  era,  it  was  com- 
menced much  earlier.  In  very  ancient  times,  while  the  traditionary 
pronunciation  was  still  fresh  in  the  recollection  of  the  learned  Jews, 
manuscripts  were  probably  written  with  the  vowel-points  annexed 
only  to  the  more  doubtful  words  ;  as  is  the  case  at  the  present  day 
with  Arabic  manuscripts  written  for  common  use.  The  Alexandri- 
an translators,  who  flourished  at  least  three  centuries  before  Christ, 
in  many  cases  agree  with  the  present  Masoretic  punctuation  in  their 
mode  of  spelling  proper  names,  though  they  frequently  depart  from 
it,  and  are  by  no  means  uniform  or  consistent  with  themselves  ;  an 
appearance  which  seems  to  indicate  that  they  used  manuscripts  gen- 
erally without  vowels,  but  pointed  in  some  places  like  those  which 
exist  at  the  present  day.  A  similar  appearance  is  exhibited  in  the 
Hexapla  of  Origen,  where  the  Hebrew  words  of  the  Old  Testament 
are  represented  by  Greek  characters  ;  and  the  testimony  of  Jerome 
to  the  same  point  is  quite  explicit.  On  Habakkuk  3:  5,  he  remarks  : 
"  Pro  eo  quod  nos  transtulimus  mortem,  in  Hebraeco  tres  litterae  sunt 
positae  -m  absque  ulla  vocali ;  quae  si  legantur  dabar  verbum  sig- 
nificant, si  debsr,  pestem."  On  the  other  hand  he  asserts  respecting 
Gen.  47:  31,  that  his  manuscript  read  HlSft,  bed,  and  not  Jltatt,  staff;  a 
distinction  which  could  be  made  only  by  vowel-points  of  some  kind. 
"  Hoc  loco  quidam  frustra  simulant,  adorasse  Jacob  summitatem 
sceptri  Joseph,  quod  videlicet  honorans  filium  potestatem  ejus  adora- 
verit,  cum  in  Hebraeo  multum  aliter  legatur  :  et  adoravit  Israel  ad 
caput  lectuli,"  (See  also  Jerome  in  Jer.  9:  22  ;  Epist.  ad  Evagr. 
120  ;  Quaest.  in  Gen.  26:  12.  36:  24). 

The  peculiarity  of  the  Masoretic  punctuation  is  an  evidence  of 
its  genuineness.     It  is  quite  different  from  the  vowel-system  of  the 
41 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III. 


cognate  dialects;  but  had  it  been  a  mere  invention  of  the  Rabbins,  it 
would  probably  have  borne  a  nearer  resemblance  to  the  Arabic,  as 
they  were  in  the  habit  of  appealing  to  the  Arabic  in  explanation  of 
the  Hebrew.  Again,  the  Masoretic  punctuation  enters  so  radically 
into  the  whole  grammatical  structure  of  the  language,  that  I  find  it 
impossible  to  suppose  it  to  be  a  mere  arbitrary  invention,  originating 
in  the  conceit  of  the  Jewish  scholars  of  a  barbarous  age. 

The  true  pronunciation  was  probably  preserved  from  the  first  in 
the  schools  of  the  priests  ;  and  to  prevent  its  being  lost,  the  scrupu- 
lous Jews  devised  one  expedient  after  another,  to  represent  as  accu- 
rately as  possible  the  minutest  varieties  of  sound,  till  they  brought 
their  punctuation  to  its  present  state,  in  which  it  exhibits  the  most 
curious,  nicely-adjusted,  and  complete  vowel-system  to  be  found  in 
any  language.  So  far  from  being  unmusical  and  harsh,  as  Dr. 
Lowth  affirms,  I  hardly  know  a  language  more  smooth,  harmonious, 
and  flowing,  than  the  Hebrew  with  the  Masoretic  pronunciation.  I 
am  far  from  supposing  that  we  pronounce  the  language  as  the  an- 
cient Hebrews  did  ;  but  I  believe  we  approach  it  as  nearly  as  we  do 
the  pronunciation  of  the  ancient  Greeks  and  Romans;  and,  indeed, 
as  the  vowel-system  is  much  more  complete  and  perfect,  we  probably 
come  much  nearer  to  the  true  Hebrew  pronunciation  than  to  the 
Greek  or  Latin.  (See  Michaelis  in  loc.  ;  Bellerman,  Versuch,  s.  x  f.  ; 
De  Wette,  Comment.  Einleit.  S.57  ff.  ;  Eichhorn,  Einleitung,  Band  I. 
S.  224  ff.  ;  Gesenius,  Vorrede  zum  Woerterbuch,  and  Geschichte  der 
Hebr.  Sprache  und  Schrift,  SS.  48  —  56.)  S. 

[C.  p.  35.]     Meaning  o/iitottt. 

Ifcf,  Tie  cut  off,  he  pruned,  namely,  the  superfluous  and  luxu- 
riant branches  of  trees.  Hence  fm'at,  a  branch,  or  twig  ;  JTHttTft, 
a  pruning-hook.  Also  he  sung,  or  chanted  ;  he  cut  his  voice  by  the 
notes  in  singing,  or  divided  it.  ^VI5  signifies  singing  with  the  voice 
(vocal  music)  :  ft:  to  play  upon  an  instrument.  *\nj  implies  either 
vocal  or  instrumental  melody.  Thus  *V1B  -p£TE  nb^23  (see 
Ps.  Ixvii.  1)  I  think  means  a  metrical  song,  accompanied  with  mu- 
sic. Thus  I  suppose  1153T»  to  denote  measure,  or  numbers,  what 
the  Greeks  called  Qv&pov.  It  may  also  be  more  immediately  refer- 
red to  the  former  and  original  sense  of  the  root,  as  signifying,  a  po- 
em cut  into  short  sentences,  and  pruned  from  every  luxuriancy  of  ex- 
pression, which  is  a  distinguishing  characteristic  of  the  Hebrew  po- 
etry. Prose  composition  is  called  SiblbiZ),  loose  or  free,  diffused  with 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  III.  323 

no  respect  to  rule ;  like  a  wild  tree,  luxuriant  on  every  side  in  its 
leaves  and  branches  :  Metrical  language  is  tTJftt,  cut  and  pruned 
on  every  side  into  sentences,  like  branches,  distributed  into  a  cer- 
tain form  and  order  ;  as  vines,  which  the  vine-dresser  corrects  with 
his  pruning  knife,  and  adjusts  into  form.  LOWTH. 

The  correctness  of  this  etymology  is  questioned  by  Michaelis, 
Gesenius,  and  De  Wette  ;  but  they  propose  no  better  one  to  supply 
its  place.  S. 

[D.  p.  35.]     Coincidence  of  verses  and  sentences. 

That  the  nature  of  Hebrew  poetry  requires  every  verse  to  con- 
tain a  complete  sentiment,  is  put  beyond  doubt  by  the  alphabetic 
poems. 

[E.  p.  36.]     Hebrew  and  Arabic  poetry. 

This  remarkable  characteristic  of  Hebrew  poetry  is  very  happily 
illustrated  by  an  author  already  quoted  (Lect.  II.  Note  B),  in  a 
comparison  between  the  Hebrew  and  Arabic  poetry. 

"  Arabica  poesis  instar  est  foeminae  fuco  illitae  et  monilibus 
onustae,  in  cuius  cultu  plurima  quidem  splendent,  adeo  ut  formae 
naturali  noceant,  sed  non  omnia  aeque  sunt  pretiosa,  imo,  ubi  dili- 
gentius  exploraveris,  pleraque  vel  adulterina,  vel  ab  aliis  mutuo  sum- 
ta,  quod  in  ipsa  luxurie  paupertatem  quandam  arguit.  Hebraea 
vero,  tanquam  coelestis  quaedam  Musa,  in  veste  gemmis  stellata  in- 
cedit.  Hinc  explicandurn  est,  quod  non  dubito,  quin  omnes  obser- 
vaveritis,  quotquot  unquam  poema  aliquod  Arabicum  latine  reddi- 
tum  legistis,  quodque  Hebraeorum  vatum  praestantiam  demonstrat, 
videlicet,  Arabum  carmina  in  alium  sermonem  conversa  nunquam 
posse  placere,  nisi  forte  versio  sit  metrica,  vel  talis,  in  qua  quidquid 
in  ipso  carmine  obscuri  vel  inepti  insit,  praetereatur  aut  emendetur. 
Hebraeorum  vero  poesis  ita  pulcra  est,  ut  ne  in  languidissimis  qui- 
dem versionibus  omnis  eius  maiestas  et  venustas  evanescat,  et  ta- 
men  optimae  versiones,  etiam  metricae,  ad  germanam  eius  pulcri- 
tudinem  non  nisi  ex  intervallo  accedant"  RAUIUS. 


324  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV. 

[A.  p.  38.]     Meaning  of  V^W  and  fTJ.Tj. 

Vttifc,  he  likened,  he  compared,  he  spoke  in  parables ;  he  uttered 
proverbs,  sentences  grave  and  pointed,  a  composition  ornamented 
with  figures  and  comparisons :  also  he  ruled,  he  was  eminent,  he 
possessed  dominion  and  authority ;  delegated,  perhaps,  and  vicarious 
in  its  original  and  restricted  sense,  whence  at  last  it  was  taken  more 
laxly,  as  referring  to  any  kind  of  dominion.  The  elder  servant 
of  Abraham,  who  presided  over  his  family,  was  certainly  called 
ib""Yt|?8r"!:33  VtiJTan,  Gen.  xxiv.  2.  He  was  in  fact  a  steward  in 
the  place  of  his  master,  and  representing  him  by  a  delegated  author- 
ity ;  whence  there  is  evidently  a  relation  between  the  two  interpre- 
tations of  this  root,  consisting  in  this  circumstance,  that  both  the 
parabolical  image,  and  the  steward  or  deputy,  are  representative. 
^U)73  is  therefore  a  composition  elevated  and  grave,  weighty  and 
powerful,  highly  ornamented  with  comparisons,  figures,  and  image- 
ry ;  such  is  the  style  of  the  Psalms,  the  prophets,  and  the  book  of 
Job.  It  is  a  diction,  which  under  one  image  or  exemplar  includes 
many,  and  may  easily  be  transferred  to  every  one  of  the  same  kind ; 
which  is  in  general  the  nature  of  proverbs  :  it  is  in  fine,  any  sen- 
tence or  axiom  excellently  or  gravely  uttered,  concise,  and  confined 
to  a  certain  form  or  manner  :  as  is  evident  from  1  Sam.  xxiv.  14,  and 
from  many  examples  in  the  Proverbs  of  Solomon.  LOWTH. 

In  Hebrew  the  verb  bfcjtt  has  two  principal  meanings.  1)  to  rule; 
%)  to  compare.  From  the  second  are  derived  the  collateral  mean- 
ings :  to  make  a  comparison,  or  speak  a  parable ;  to  utter  a  prov- 
erb ;  to  speak  in  figurative  language  ;  and  hence  the  word  came  to 
denote  the  use  of  highly  ornamented  and  poetic  diction  of  every  sort. 
According  to  Gesenius  (in  verb.),  these  different  significations  ap- 
pear to  be  derived  from  the  primitive  meaning,  to  place ;  in  Arabic 

VXc  and  VjCc ,  to  place  one's  self  before  another,  to  do  him  hom- 
age; hence,  1)  causative,  to  make  one  render  obedience ;  2)  to  place 
opposite ;  and  thence,  to  compare,  to  resemble,  to  make  a  com- 
parison. 

In  this  manner  the  Hebrew  noun  b'£tt  and  the  Arabic  VX/o 
came  to  signify  a  resemblance,  a  comparison ;  a  parable  ;  a  proverb ; 
figurative  language  in  general ;  and  therefore,  a  song,  or  poem.  IB 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV.  325 


the  Bible  it  sometimes  appears  to  have  a  restricted  meaning,  and  is 
used  to  denote  didactic  poetry  (see  Lect.  XXIV.)  in  distinction 
from  poetry  more  highly  ornamented  ("Vb),  as  1  Kings  5:  12.  Prov. 
1:1.  But  generally,  all  sorts  of  poems,  whether  prophetic,  trium- 
phal, elegiac,  or  satirical,  are  called  tPblgtt,  on  account  of  their  fig- 
urative style.  Compare  Num.  21:  27.  xxiii.  xxiv.  Ps.  49:  5.  Isa. 
14:  4.  Heb.  2:  6.  The  same  latitude  of  signification  is  found  in  the 

5     /   C£ 

Syriac  \^^o  and  the  Chaldee  ^nft.      In   Arabic  the  word  jV&cf 

denotes  verses. 

5 
The  word  fn^h  (in  Arabic  <-\-j.^,  a   comparison  or   allegory) 


from  the  verb  "nfl  (in  Arabic  oV^>  to  bend,  to  leave  the  direct 
way),  properly  signifies  an  intricate  or  complicated  sentence,  some- 
thing which  requires  ingenuity  and  acuteness  to  solve  ;  an  enigma, 
or  riddle.  The  word  is  applied  to  pointed  and  striking  proverbs,  the 
language  of  which  is  purposely  rendered  somewhat  ambiguous  and 
intricate,  in  order  to  arrest  and  fix  the  attention,  (Prov.  1:6)  ;  to 
visions,  or  the  more  obscure  intimations  of  the  divine  will,  (Num. 
12:  8)  ;  to  the  more  intricate  sort  of  parables,  (Ezek.  17:  2)  ;  and  to 
the  more  solemn  and  elevated  kinds  of  poetry.  (Ps.  49:  5.  78:  2. 
Compare  Hab.  2:  6). 

The  proposing  of  enigmas  for  the  mutual  trial  of  skill,  on  occca- 
sions  of  visits  and  festivals,  was  a  very  favourite  amusement  among 
the  Orientals,  nor  was  it  unknown  to  the  ancient  Latins,  (Aul.  Gell. 
Noct.  Att.  Lib.  XII.  2.  6.  Compare  Lib.  XVIII.  2.  111).  Samson, 
on  his  marriage  festival,  knew  no  more  acceptable  mode  of  amusing 
his  guests  than  by  propounding  to  them  a  riddle,  which  he  gave  out 
in  verse,  and  with  chime  at  least,  if  not  in  rhyme  ;  and  of  which  they 
gave  a  solution  in  the  same  style,  (Judg.  14:  14,  18.  Compare 
Herder,  Geist,  Th.  II.  S.  265).  The  Queen  of  Sheba  seems  to 
have  made  a  like  trial  of  Solomon's  wisdom  (1  Kings  10:  1)  ;  and 
the  sharp  contests  of  this  sort  between  that  wise  king  and  Hiram 
king  of  Tyre,  are  much  celebrated  by  Josephus,  (Antiq.  VIII.  5:  4), 
Similar  amusements  among  the  Ethiopians,  Egyptians,  and  Greeks, 
are  described  by  Jablonsky  (Pantheon  Aegypt.  Proleg.  Sec.  48)  ; 
and  reference  to  the  same  custom  is  made  by  Mohammed  in  the 
Coran  (xxv.  35). 

Enigmas  of  some  sort  are  very  frequent  in  the  Oriental  didactic 
poetry,  (as  Prov.  xxx.  xxxi.  Compare  Herder,  Briefe,  Th.  I.  S.  167 


326  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV. 


if.  and  Geist,  Th.  II.  S.  266  ff.)  ;  and  something  of  very  much  the 
same  character  is  sometimes  found  in  the  highest  and  most  sublime 
prophetic  poetry.  A  remarkable  example  occurs  in  Isa.  xxi.  11, 
12,  which  is  thus  explained  by  Rosenmueller  : 

"  Quod  loco  lesaiano  a  Michaele  commemorato,  XXI.  12,  legi- 
tur,  aenigma  recte  propheticum  dici  potest.  Inducuntur  Idumaei 
tempore  communis  alicuius  cum  populo  Hebraico  calamitatis,  quae- 
rentes  ex  vate  qui  custodis  sive  vigilis  persona  sistitur,  quamdiu 
tempestas  ista  calamitosa,  noctis  imagine  expressa,  sit  duratura  : 


T   *    —       • 

Ad  me  clamatur  ex  Seire  : 
Gustos,  quid  de  nocte  ? 
Gustos,  quid  de  nocte  ? 
Ferunt  responsum  : 


Venit  matutinum,  etiamque  nox. 

Cuius  aenigmatis  sensum  optime  exponit  HIERONYMUS  :  Venit  mane 
populo  meo,  et  nox  genti  Idumaeorum  :  illis  praebebo  lucem,  vos  in 
tenebris  derelinquam."  (Compare  Michaelis  and  Rosenmueller  in 
loc.)  S. 

[B.  p.  39.]     Union  of  poetry,  music,  and  dancing  among  the  ancients. 

In  the  infancy  of  all  nations,  poetry,  music,  and  dancing  are  inti- 
mately connected,  and  it  is  very  seldom  that  any  one  of  these  arts  is 
exercised  separately  from  the  others.  Such  a  separation  requires  an 
advanced,  and  considerably  refined,  state  of  society.  Among  all 
wild  people  these  are  the  natural  expressions  of  joy  ;  and  in  all  their 
festivals  we  find  that  their  songs  were  accompanied  with  music  and 
dancing.  For  example,  Miriam  at  the  Red  Sea,  (Ex.  15:  20)  ;  Jeph- 
tha's  daughter,  (Judg.  11:  34)  ;  the  Israelitish  women  who  celebrat- 
ed David's  victory,  (1  Sam.  21:  11).  The  religious  worship  of  the 
Hebrews  was  celebrated  with  dances  ;  and  the  practice  was  con- 
tinued among  them  to  a  very  late  period.  (2  Sam.  6:  14.  Ps.  149:  3. 
150:  4.  Jer.  31:  4,  13.  Lam.  5:  15.  Compare  Herder,  Geist,  Th. 
II.  S.  244  ff.)  S. 

[C.  p.  39.]     Poets  anciently  denominated  sages  and  prophets.  . 

As  poets  were  the  first  moral  instructers  of  mankind,  it  was  very 
common  in  ancient  times  to  denominate  them  wise  men  or  sages  ; 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV.  327 


and  that  too  after  they  had  ceased  to  be  moral  instructors.     Cora- 
pare  the  following  quotation  from  the  son  of  Sirach  and  Anacreon. 
2oq>ol  hoyoi  iv  natdfla  avitov, 


tv      a.    Ecclus.  xliv.  4. 


x 

IMV  ^oqiMv  KKltiTttt.     Anacreon,  L.  I.  22. 
Compare  Pindar,  Isth.  V.  36,  and  Scholiast  in  loc. 


$  txart 

On  which  the  Scholiast  observes  :  oo^iGidg  [tfv  xai  ooyovg 
TOVS  noirjius.  "  Poetae  et  priores  multo  fuerunt,  (philosophis)  et 
ante  natum  philosophiae  nomen  pro  sapientibus  habebantur."  Lac- 
tantius,  Lib.  V.  5.  Heman  and  Ethan,  the  sons  of  Mahol,  whose 
wisdom  is  so  much  celebrated,  (1  Kings  4:  81,  compare  1  Chron. 
2:  6),  were  poets,  if  we  may  judge  from  the  titles  of  Ps.  LXXXVIII. 
LXXXIX.  As  poetry  was  supposed  to  be  the  effect  of  divine  in- 
spiration (see  Lect.  II.  Note  B),  poets  were  very  generally  denom- 
inated prophets.  So  Miriam  and  Deborah  are  both  called  prophetes- 
ses (Ex.  15:  20.  Judg.  4:  4).  So  the  psalmists  appointed  by  David 
are  said  to  prophesy  with  the  harp,  with  psaltries,  etc.  (1  Chron.  25: 
1  —  7).  (Lowth  and  Michaelis  in  loc.  Compare  Herder,  Geist, 
Th.  II.  S.  61  ;  Eichhorn,  Einleitung,  Band  V.  SS.  23,  24).  S. 

[D.  p.  40.]     Ancient  uses  of  poetry. 

In  this  Note  I  have  inserted  the  quotations  from  ancient  authors, 
which  Lowth  has  adduced  in  illustration  of  his  position,  and  the 
remarks  of  Michaelis  and  Gregory  on  the  same  subject.  S. 

This  matter  is  well  explained  by  Isidorus,  however  rashly  some 
learned  men  may  have  taken  it.  "  It  is  well  known,"  says  he,  "  that 
among  the  Greeks,  as  well  as  among  the  Latins,  metrical  composi- 
tion was  much  more  ancient  than  prose.  Every  species  of  knowl- 
edge was  at  first  contained  in  poetry  :  it  was  long  before  prose  com- 
position flourished.  The  first  man  among  the  Greeks,  who  compos- 
ed in  prose,  was  Pherecydes  Syrius  ;  among  the  Romans,  Appius 
Caecus  first  published  a  work  in  prose  against  Pyrrhus."  ISIDOR. 
HISPAL.  Orig.  Lib.  1.  27. 

"  The  laws  of  Charondas  were  sung  at  banquets  among  the  Athe- 
nians, as  Hermippus  relates."  Athen.  Lib.  XIV,  3.  See  Bentley's 
Dissertations  on  Phalaris,  p.  373r 


328  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV. 


"  Why  are  laws  called  canticles  ?  but  that  before  alphabetical 
writing  was  invented,  the  laws  used  to  be  sung,  that  they  might  be 
preserved  in  remembrance  ?  as  is  the  custom  still  among  the  Aga- 
thyrsi."  Prob.  S.  19.  Q.  28.  LOWTH. 

Possibly  laws,  which  are  in  the  sententious  style,  were  original- 
ly precepts  of  equity  and  morals,  and  in  course  of  time  acquired  au- 
thority in  the  courts  of  justice.  There  is  much  of  this  proverbial 
style  in  the  ancient  German  laws  :  and  I  am  assured  by  good  author- 
ity, in  those  of  Sweden  also.  Moses  himself  is  so  sententious  and 
compact,  and  pays  so  much  attention  to  brevity  in  many  of  his  laws, 
that  he  seems  to  have  adopted  into  his  code  some  well-known  pro- 
verbs, containing  the  general  principles  of  equity  ;  of  this  T  think 
there  is  an  instance  in  Exod.  xxiii.  5,  in  which  there  is  a  point  and 
antithesis,  more  resembling  the  familiarity  of  a  proverb  than  the  dig- 
nity of  a  statute.  To  the  example  of  the  Lusitanians,  we  may  add 
one  more  recent  of  the  Swedes,  who  in  the  year  1748  published 
laws  in  verse. 

After  the  extraordinary  revolutions  of  Germany,  and  the  disper- 
sion of  that  people  into  different  colonies,  it  is  not  surprising  that  no 
monuments  of  the  poetical  records  of  our  ancestors  should  remain. 
Scandinavia  and  Iceland  have  been  more  fortunate  in  this  respect ; 
there  the  records  of  their  most  ancient  transactions  are  traditionally 
preserved  to  this  day.  These  instances  of  a  practice  so  agreeable  to 
that  of  the  Hebrews,  existing  among  a  people  so  remote,  serve  to 
prove  the  great  similarity  in  the  human  mind  throughout  all  the  coun- 
tries of  the  globe,  and  show  that  the  most  natural  and  early  mode  of 
preserving  facts,  has  been  by  verses  committed  to  memory,  rather 
than  by  written  documents,  What  Pococke  relates  of  the  Arabs,  ap- 
plies perhaps  more  directly  to  the  present  subject.  "  It  seems,"  he 
says,  "to  be  entirely  owing  to  their  poetry,  that  so  copious  a  lan- 
guage is  preserved  in  a  perfect  state.  Among  other  commendations 
of  their  poetry,  they  enumerate  this,  that  both  the  purity  of  the  Ara- 
bic language,  and  the  propriety  and  elegance  of  their  pronunciation, 
have  owed  their  preservation  entirely  to  it.  Ebn  Phares  observes, 
that  the  Arabic  poems  serve  in  the  place  of  commentaries,  or  annals, 
in  which  are  recorded  the  series  of  their  genealogies,  and  all  the  facts 
of  history  deserving  of  remembrance,  and  from  which  a  knowledge 
of  the  language  is  to  be  collected."  MICHAELIS. 

However  the  antiquity  of  Ossian's  poems,  as  exhibited  to  the  pub- 
lic, may  be  doubted,  it  is  certain  that  there  exists  in  the  Highlands 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV.  329 


of  Scotland  many  remains  of  the  ancient  historical  ballads,  which, 
though  in  all  probability  of  a  much  later  date  than  the  age  of  Ossian 
is  pretended  to  be,  contain  many  marks  of  wild  genius,  and  I  am  in- 
formed from  good  authority,  furnished  Mr.  Macpherson  with  the  bulk 
of  his  materials.  GREGORY. 

To  these  testimonies  concerning  the  early  use  of  poetry,  I  will 
add  a  remarkable  passage  of  Plutarch,  which  states  summarily  many 
facts  relating  to  this  circumstance.  "  The  use  of  reason  seems  to 
resemble  the  exchange  of  money  :  that  which  is  good  and  lawful,  is 
generally  current  and  well  known,  and  passes  sometimes  at  a  higher 
and  sometimes  at  a  lower  value.  Thus,  there  was  a  time  when  the 
stamp  and  coin  of  all  reasoning  or  composition  was  verse  and  song. 
Even  history,  philosophy,  every  action  and  passion,  which  required 
grave  or  serious  discussion,  was  written  in  poetry  and  adapted  to 
music.  For  what  at  present  few  will  attend  to,  was  then  by  all  men 
thought  an  object  of  importance  :  by  ploughmen  and  by  bird-catch- 
ers, according  to  PINDAR.  For  such  was  the  inclination  for  poetry 
at  that  period,  that  they  adapted  their  very  precepts  and  instructions 
to  vocal  and  instrumental  music,  and  exhorted,  reproved,  and  per- 
suaded by  fables  or  allegories.  The  praises  also  of  their  gods,  their 
prayers,  and  thanksgivings  after  victory,  were  all  composed  in  verse  ; 
sop;e  through  the  love  of  harmony,  and  some  through  custom.  It 
is  not  therefore  that  Apollo  envies  the  science  of  divination  this  or- 
nament, nor  did  he  design  to  banish  from  the  Tripos  his  beloved 
muse  ;  he  rather  wished  to  introduce  her  as  one  who  loved  harmony 
and  excited  to  it ;  as  one  who  was  ready  to  assist  the  fancy  and  con- 
ception, and  to  help  to  produce  what  was  noble  and  sublime,  as 
most  becoming  and  most  to  be  admired."  PLUT.  Inquiry  why  the 
Pythia  now  cea.sts  to  deliver  her  oracles  in  verse.  LOWTH. 

See  this  subject  treated  at  large,  Essays  historical  and  moral  by 
G.  GREGORY,  Essay  I.  On  the  progress  of  manners,  p.  31,  37,  39, 
40,  43.  GREGORY. 

We  may  add,  that  poetry  is  much  less  liable  to  be  corrupted  than 
prose.  So  faithful  a  preserver  of  truth  is  metre,  that  what  is  liable 
to  be  changed,  augmented,  or  violated,  almost  daily  in  prose,  may 
continue  for  ages  in  verse,  without  variation,  without  even  a  change 
in  the  obsolete  phraseology.  MICHAELIS. 


330  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV. 

[E.  p.  42.]     Twofold  meaning  of  Vtttt. 

In  Numbers  21:  27,  the  Seventy  translate  iD^ttE  by 
vctl.     Compare  Jer.  48:  45,  46. 

"  Who  these  enigmatists  are  (says  Augustin)  is  not  very  plain, 
since  there  is  no  such  appellation  in  our  language  (Latin) ;  nor  in- 
deed is  the  word  elsewhere  found  in  the  Holy  Scriptures  (that  is,  in 
the  Septuagint) ;  but  since  they  seem  to  have  been  employed  in 
singing  a  poem,  in  which  was  celebrated  a  war  that  had  been  car- 
ried on  between  the  Amorites  and  the  Moabites,  in  which  Seor,  king 
of  the  Amorites,  was  victorious,  it  is  not  improbable  that  these  enig- 
matists may  have  been  those  whom  we  now  call  poets ,  inasmuch  as 
it  is  customary  with  poets  to  mingle  enigmas  and  fables  in  their 
verses,  by  which  they  obscurely  indicate  realities  :  for  an  enigma  is 
no  other  than  a  figurative  mode  of  expression,  upon  the  explanation 
of  which  depends  our  understanding  the  author."  Qusest.  xlv.  in 
Num.  LOWTH. 

This  matter  will  appear  clearer  and  more  easy  of  conception,  if 
the  distinction  be  rightly  observed  between  the  two  different  signifi- 
cations of  the  word  b«L'J3  :  the  one  more  comprehensive,  and  includ- 
ing all  kinds  of  poetry,  on  account  of  the  figurative  language ;  the 
other  peculiar* to  a  certain  kind  of  poetry,  which  is  opposed  to  the 
canticle  or  song.  Our  autr^pr,  in  the  following  page,  seems  to  ap- 
prehend rightly  of  the  word  in  this  double  sense  ;  but  I  thus  far  dif- 
fer from  him,  that  I  think  it  is  not  expressive  of  two  particular  spe- 
cies of  poetry,  but  in  the  one  sense  it  means  the  whole  genus,  and 
in  the  other  the  particular  species,  which  I  just  now  pointed  out. 
The  Seventy  have  rendered  this  word  very  ill  aiviypuTtOTag ;  bttfo, 
or  similitude,  may  indeed  sometimes  denote  an  enigma ;  and  if  Au- 
gustin has  mistaken  the  meaning  of  the  Septuagint,  it  is  excusable, 
since,  whatever  might  be  his  ability  in  other  respects,  a  profound 
knowledge  of  Hebrew  was  certainly  not  among  his  excellencies. 

MICSAELIS. 

[F.  p.  42.]    Ancient  historical  poems. 

In  the  time  of  Moses,  the  Hebrew  had  reached  its  highest  point 
of  refinement,  and  his  age  is  often  and  justly  styled  the  golden  age  of 
the  language.  That  it  should  have  attained  so  much  copiousness 
and  beauty  without  having  been  employed  as  a  written  language  pre- 
vious to  that  time,  is  altogether  improbable,  not  to  say  impossible. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV.  331 

The  Oriental  nations,  by  a  tradition  almost  universal  among  them, 
attribute  the  invention  of  letters  to  Seth,  the  son  of  Adam.  (Com- 
pare Eichhorn,  Einleitung,  Band  III.  S.  8). 

Between  Moses  and  Abraham,  the  founder  of  the  Hebrew  na- 
tion, there  is  an  interval  of  about  550  years ;  and  about  2500  be- 
tween him  and  the  earliest  of  the  events  which  he  records.  That 
all  the  circumstances  which  he  relates,  the  genealogy  and  history  of 
so  many  different  families,  the  particular  accounts  of  individuals,  the 
various  conversations  which  he  details,  should  have  been  preserved 
without  the  use  of  writing,  is,  humanly  speaking,  impossible ;  and 
Moses  nowhere  intimates  that  he  received  a  knowledge  of  all  the 
facts  contained  in  his  history  by  immediate  revelation  from  God  :  on 
the  contrary,  he  once  at  least  introduces  as  authority  a  direct  quo- 
tation from  a  book  extant  at  the  time  when  he  wrote.  (Num. 
21:  14). 

That  the  Hebrews,  then,  had  books  in  their  own  language  before 
the  time  of  Moses,  may  be  considered  certain ;  and  that  he  made 
use  of  them  in  composing  his  history,  scarcely  admits  of  doubt. 
The  first  eleven  chapters  of  Genesis  particularly  (which  bring  the 
history  down  to  the  time  of  Abraham),  appear  to  be  a  selection  or 
compilation  from  very  ancient  records ;  and  no  finished  Hebrew 
scholar  can  avoid  feeling  a  very  striking  diversity  of  style  in  these 
chapters,  and  a  departure  in  almost  all  of  them  from  the  usual  style 
of  Moses.  For  the  sake  of  trial,  let  the  student  compare  Gen.  1: 
1 — 2:  3,  with  Gen.  2:  4 — 25 ;  and  both  of  these  with  some  of  the  ac- 
knowledged compositions  of  Moses,  for  example,  the  third  chapter 
of  Exodus.  These  primeval  records  of  God's  dealings  with  man- 
kind in  the  infancy  of  our  race,  from  which  Moses,  under  divine  di- 
rection, compiled  his  history,  may  not  improperly  be  viewed  as  the 
Bible  of  the  patriarchs.  After  the  history  of  Abraham  commences 
(C.  xii.),  the  narrative  proceeds  uniformly  and  regularly,  as  if  from 
the  pen  of  one  writer,  with  the  exception  perhaps  of  the  history  of 
Esau's  family  (C.  xxxvi.),  of  the  posterity  of  Judah  (C.  xxxviii.),  and 
a  few  verses  of  some  of  the  other  chapters ;  all  which  are  apparently 
literal  selections  from  the  records  of  the  several  tribes  to  which  they 
refer.  (See  Herder,  Briefe,  Th.  I.  S.  30  ff ;  Eichhorn,  Einleitung, 
Band  III.  S.  18  ff). 

But  whatever  may  be  thought  of  the  existence  of  such  a  pa- 
triarchal Bible  as  I  have  supposed,  one  thing  at  least  is  certain, 
namely,  that  there  were  several  historical  poems  in  existence  long 


832  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV. 


before  the  time  of  Moses,  which  he  has  transmitted  to  us,  apparent- 
ly in  the  very  words  in  which  they  were  originally  composed.  Of 
these,  the  most  ancient  is  the  address  of  Lamech,  (Gen.  4:  23,  24). 
The  historian  having  mentioned  Lamech,  of  the  seed  of  Cain,  the 
father  of  Jabal,  the  first  who  applied  himself  to  husbandry  and  pas- 
turage ;  of  Jubal,  the  inventor  of  musical  instruments  ;  and  of  Tu- 
bal-Cain,  who  first  discovered  the  art  of  working  metals  ;  introduces 
this  address,  as  much  as  to  say,  "  This  is  the  Lamech  by  whom,  (or 
concerning  whom),  this  well-known  traditional  song  was  composed." 
It  may  be  that  we  have  only  the  first  lines  of  the  song,  and  that  if 
the  whole  were  preserved,  the  occasion  of  it  would  have  been  more 
apparent  than  it  now  is.  As  it  stands,  the  most  obvious  explanation 
seems  to  be,  that  Lamech  had  killed  a  man  who  assaulted  him ;  and 
to  quiet  the  apprehensions  of  his  wives,  who  entertained  fears  for  his 
safety,  he  alleges  that  what  he  had  done  was  done  in  self-defence, 
and  that  if  Cain  his  ancestor,  who  had  committed  an  unprovoked 
and  aggravated  murder,  was  to  be  avenged  seven  times  on  any  one 
who  would  take  his  life,  surely  he,  who  had  acted  only  on  the  defen- 
sive, would  be  avenged  seventy  and  seven  times. 

The  explanation  of  Herder  is  quite  a  different  one,  but  so  ingen- 
ious, that  I  think  it  deserves  an  insertion  in  this  place.  He  sup- 
poses that  the  haughty  and  revengeful  Lamech,  overjoyed  by  the  in- 
vention of  metallic  weapons  by  his  son  Tubal-Cain,  breaks  out  in 
this  triumphal  song,  boasting,  that  if  Cain,  by  the  providence  of  God, 
was  to  be  avenged  seven  times,  he,  by  means  of  the  newly  invented 
weapons,  so  much  superior  to  any  thing  of  the  kind  known  at  that 
time,  would  be  able  to  take  much  heavier  vengeance  on  those  who 
injured  him.  (Herder,  Geist,  Th.  I.  S.  309). 

The  following  are  the  remarks  of  Michaelis : 

"  The  Jews  have  indulged  great  liberty  of  fiction  and  conjec- 
ture concerning  this  passage,  which  has  answered  no  other  purpose 
than  to  render  it  more  perplexed  to  others  also,  who  wrere  unable  to 
digest  their  whimsical  and  absurd  explications.  To  me  there  is  very 
little  obscurity  in  the  original ;  for  though  we  are  necessarily  igno- 
rant of  the  name  of  the  person  who  was  murdered,  I  think  it  is  suf- 
ficiently plain  that  some  person  was  murdered  by  Larnech.  I  say 
person ;  for  what  the  Jews  have  feigned  concerning  the  death  of 
two  persons,  the  one  a  youth,  and  the  other  a  man,  proceeds  entire- 
ly from  their  ignorance  of  the  nature  of  the  Hebrew  poetry,  and  par- 
ticularly of  the  parallelism  or  repetition  of  certain  members  of  the 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IV.  333 


sentences,  which  our  author  has  explained  in  a  very  masterly  man- 
ner in  the  19th  Lecture.  Nor  is  there  any  more  reason  to  distin- 
guish between  the  youth  and  the  man,  than  to  suppose  Hadah  and 
Sillah  other  than  the  wives  of  Lamech,  who  are  mentioned  in  the 
next  line  : 

"  Hadah  and  Sillah  hear  my  voice, 

"  Ye  wives  of  Lamech  attend,  etc." 

The  truth  is,  Lamech  had  committed  a  murder  :  he  repents  of  the 
fact,  but  hopes,  after  the  example  of  Cain,  to  escape  with  impunity, 
and  with  that  hope  he  cheers  his  wives,  who  are  anxious  for  his  fate. 
It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  he  addresed  them  in  verse  ;  the  sub- 
stance of  what  he  said  has  been  reduced  to  numbers  for  the  sake  of 
preserving  it  easily  in  the  memory.  This  poem  therefore  constitutes 
a  part  of  history  known  to  the  Israelites  :  and  Moses  intimates  to 
what  Lamech  it  relates,  namely,  not  to  the  son  of  Seth,  the  father  of 
Noah,  but  to  this  Lamech  of  the  seed  of  Cain :  what  he  adds  is  to 
this  effect :  "  This  Lamech,  who  was  of  the  seed  of  Cain,  is  the  same 
who  complained  to  his  wives  in  those  well-known  traditional  vers- 
es, etc." 

"  That  Moses  has  preserved  many  relics  of  this  kind,  is  evident 
from  the  fragments  of  verse  which  are  scattered  throughout  his  wri- 
tings, and  which  are  very  distinguishable  from  his  usual  language." 

The  only  difficulty  attending  the  explanation  of  this  song  arises 
from  the  use  of  the  suffix  pronoun  %  and  the  preposition  b-  That 
the  suffix  pronouns  are  taken  passively  as  well  as  actively  is  plain 
from  Jer.  51:  35.  Ex.  20:  20.  Isa.  56:  7,  21 :  2.  Ps.  56:  13.  etc. 
(See  Stuart's  Heb.  Gram.  §  472,  3d  edit.) ;  and  that  the  preposition 
^  often  means  on  account  of,  propter,  is  evident  from  Lev.  19:  28. 
Num.  6:  7.  Isa.  14:  9.  15:  5.  30:  1.  36:9.  60:  9.  etc. 

The  poetical  piece  which  next  occurs,  is  the  address  of  Noah  re- 
specting his  sons  (Gen.  9:  25 — 27),  the  meaning  of  which  is  suffi- 
ciently obvious.  We  next  find  the  blessing  of  Isaac  on  his  sons 
(Gen.  27:  27 — 29,  39,  40) ;  and  then  the  most  sublime  and  elegant 
of  all  the  remains  of  primeval  poetry,  the  blessing  of  Jacob,  (Gen. 
xlix.).  We  cannot  stop  here  to  go  into  an  examination  of  this  most 
interesting  relic  of  antiquity  ;  which,  as  it  stands  in  the  English 
translation,  is  quite  unintelligible.  It  may  be  sufficient  to  remark, 
that  the  old  Nomadic  patriarch  gives  a  hasty  but  striking  sketch  of 
the  character  of  each  of  his  sons,  generally  by  reference  to  the  well- 
known  qualities  of  some  animal  with  which  he  compares  them  ;  as- 


334  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  V. 


signs  them  their  location  in  the  promised  land ;  and  prophetically 
glances  at  the  condition  of  their  descendants.  These  blessings,  in 
fact,  in  the  patriarchal  times,  were  equivalent  to  a  will.  The  words 
of  Jacob  were  constantly  in  the  mind  of  Moses,  when  he  pronounced 
his  blessing  on  the  tribes  of  Israel  (Deut.  xxxiii.) ;  and  the  two 
pieces  ought  to  be  studied  in  connexion.  (Compare  Herder,  Briefe, 
Th.  I.  S.  64  ff;  Geist,  Th.  II.  S.  179  ff). 

In  Num.  21:  14,  15,  there  is  a  quotation  from  a  triumphal  song 
of  the  Hebrews ;  vs.  17,  18,  the  first  stanzas  of  a  song  which  the 
Hebrews  sung  at  the  digging  of  a  well ;  and  27 — 30,  the  triumphal 
song  of  the  Hebrews  for  their  victory  over  the  Amorites ;  a  large 
part  of  which  is  made  up  of  a  quotation  from  the  triumphal  song  of 
the  Amorites  on  occasion  of  their  conquest  of  Moab.  This  Song  is 
quoted  by  Jer.  48:  45,  46. 

To  complete  the  collection  of  historical  poems  from  the  books  of 
Moses,  add  the  song  by  the  Red  Sea  (Ex.  15:  1 — 21) ;  and  the  ad- 
dresses of  Balaam  (Num.  xxiv.  xxv.).  These  last  are  in  the  highest 
style  of  prophetic  inspiration,  and  they  appear  to  be  the  very  words 
pronounced  by  Balaam,  or  an  exact  translation  of  them  from  a  kin- 
dred dialect.  (See  Lect.  XX.  p.  174).  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  V. 

[A.  p.  46.]     Rhetorical  figures. 

•  Comparison  appears  to  be  the  first  and  most  natural  of  all  rhetor- 
ical figures.  When  at  a  loss  to  explain  our  meaning,  we  naturally 
apply  to  the  associating  principle  to  furnish  an  illustration  :  and  this 
seems  almost  an  involuntary  act  of  the  mind.  A  Metaphor  is  a 
comparison,  without  the  words  indicating  resemblance.  When  a 
savage  experienced  a  sensation,  for  which  he  had  as  yet  no  name, 
he  applied  that  of  the  idea  which  most  resembled  it,  in  order  to  ex- 
plain himself.  Thus  the  words  expressing  the  faculties  of  the  mind 
are  taken  from  sensible  images,  as  fancy  from  phantasma;  idea  in 
the  original  language  means  an  image  or  picture;  and  way  has 
always  been  used  to  express  the  mode  of  attaining  our  end  or  desire. 
There  is,  however,  another  reason  for  the  use  of  metaphorical 
language:  when  the  mind  is  agitated,  the  associations  are  more 
strongly  felt,  and  the  connected  ideas  will  more  readily  present 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  V.  335 


themselves,  than  at  another  time.  On  this  account  a  man  in  a  pas- 
sion will  frequently  reject  the  words  which  simply  express  his 
thoughts,  and,  for  the  sake  of  giving  them  more  force,  will  make  use 
of  images  stronger,  more  lively,  and  more  congenial  to  the  tone  of 
his  mind. 

The  principal  advantage  which  the  metaphor  possesses  over  the 
simile  or  comparison,  seems  to  consist  in  the  former  transporting  the 
mind,  and  carrying  it  nearer  to  the  reality  than  the  latter  ;  as  when 
we  say — "  Achilles  rushed  like  a  lion,"  we  have  only  the  idea  of  a 
man  going  on  furiously  to  battle  ;  but  when  we  say  instead  of  Achil- 
les— "  The  lion  rushed  on,"  the  idea  is  more  animated.  There  is 
also  more  of  brevity  in  a  style  that  abounds  in  metaphors,  than  in  a 
style  which  consists  more  of  comparisons  ;  and  therefore  it  proves  a 
better  vehicle  for  the  sublime. 

The  rule  which  good  writers  seem  to  have  adopted  respecting 
the  use  of  similes  or  metaphors  is  this  :  Where  the  resemblance  is 
very  strong  and  obvious,  it  may  be  expressed  by  a  simple  metaphor, 
and  it  will,  in  general,  be  expressed  more  forcibly  ;  but  where  the 
resemblance  is  not  so  obvious,  it  requires  to  be  more  expanded,  and 
then  a  comparison  or  simile  will  appear  neither  formal  nor  pompous. 

There  is  another  observation  concerning  the  use  of  these  figures, 
which  is  more  common,  though  I  do  not  think  the  reason  of  it  is 
generally  understood.  Comparisons  are  unnatural  in  extremes  of 
passion,  though  metaphors  are  not.  The  truth  is,  the  mind  when 
strongly  agitated  readily  catches  at  slight  associations,  and  meta- 
phors therefore  are  instantaneously  formed  ;  but  it  is  impossible  that 
the  mind  should  dwell  upon  them  with  the  formality  and  exactness 
of  a  person  making  a  comparison.  GREGORY. 

No  writers  make  so  free  a  use  of  metaphor  as  the  Hebrew,  and 
no  language  is  so  favourable  to  this  figure.  Those  ideas  and  objects 
which  in  other  languages  are  expressed  in  abstract  terms,  in  the 
Hebrew  are  made  to  act  and  speak  and  possess  all  the  attribufes  of 
living  beings.  For  an  illustration  of  this  remark,  the  Hebrew  stu- 
dent has  only  to  examine  the  use  which  is  made  of  the  words,  son, 
daughter,  face,  etc.  To  give  a  few  examples.  A  man  eighty-six 
years  old,  is  a  son  of  eighty-six  years  (Gen.  16:  16) ;  a  man  con- 
demned to  death,  is  a  son  of  death  (1  Sam.  20: 31) ;  arrows  are  sons 
of  the  bow,  or  of  the  quiver  (Job  41:  19.  Lam.  3:  13) ;  morning  stars 
are  sows  of  the  dawn  (Isa.  14:  12) ;  the  suburbs  of  a  city  are  its 
daughters  (Num.  21:  25.  Judg.  11:  26.  Josh.  15:  45) ;  the  pupil  of 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI. 


the  eye  is  the  daughter  of  the  eye  (Lam.  2:  18),  sometimes  the  lit- 
tle man  of  the  eye  (Deut.  32:  10),  on  account  of  the  image  reflected 
from  it ;  or  more  fully,  the  little  man,  the  daughter  of  the  eye  (Ps. 
17:  8),  etc.  These  metaphors  are  constantly  occurring,  and  form  a 
constituent  part  of  the  language.  As,  the  ark  toalked  on  the  face  of 
the  waters  (Gen.  7:  18) ;  a  hill  with  a  rich  soil  is  called  a  horn,  the 
son  of  oil  (Isa.  5:  1).  Midnight  is  called  the  little  man  of  the  night 
(Prov.  7:  9) ;  and  thick  darkness  is  styled  the  little  man  of  dark- 
ness, (Prov.  20:  20)  ;  the  figure  being  derived  in  both  instances 
from  the  application  of  the  word  •jri'W  (little  man)  to  the  pupil  of 
the  eye.  The  rim  of  a  vessel,  the  border  of  a  garment,  the  bank  of 
a  river,  the  shore  of  the  sea,  are  all  called  lip,  (1  Kings  7:  26.  Ex. 
28:  32.  Gen.  22:  17.  41:  3).  In  the  xxxviii.  chapter  of  Job,  the 
earth  is  a  great  palace,  whose  corner-stone  was  laid  by  God,  on 
which  occasion  all  the  morning  stars  sang  together  (vs.  4 — 7) ;  the 
ocean  is  a  child,  issuing  from  the  womb  of  its  mother  earth,  and 
clothed  with  clouds  and  swaddled  with  thick  darkness  (vs.  8,  9) ; 
the  dawn  is  an  intelligent  agent,  awaiting  the  command  of  its  Crea- 
tor (vs.  12, 13) ;  the  lightnings  listen  to  the  voice  of  their  Sovereign, 
appear  before  him  at  his  call,  and  announce  their  presence  (v.  35). 
A  like  boldness  in  the  use  of  metaphor  is  found  in  other  Oriental 
writers.  Mohammed  calls  wine  the  mother  of  sins  ;  and  a  Persian 
poet  speaking  of  the  mingling  of  water  and  wine  for  a  feast,  says, 
the  son  of  the  clouds  marries  the  daughter  of  the  vine.  (Compare 
Herder,  Geist,  Th.  I..  S.  96.  Th.  II.  S.  10 ;  Sir  William  Jones, 
Comment,  p.  120).  S. 

[B.  p.  50.]     Sources  of  poetic  imagery. 

To  the  four  sources  of  poetic  imagery  mentioned  by  our  author, 
may  be  added  a  fifth,  namely,  Poetic  Fable,  of  which  see  more, 
Lect.  IX.  Note  F.  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI. 


[A.  p.  52.]     Boldness  of  oriental  imagery. 

Boldness  and  luxuriance  of  imagery  is  one  of  the  most  striking 
traits  of  Oriental  poetry.  In  the  East,  the  beauty  of  the  climate,  the 
richness  of  the  soil,  the  abundance  of  vegetation,  laid  open  many 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI.  337 


sources  of  imagery  to  which  we  are  strangers  :  and  when  any  one 
point  of  resemblance  presented  itself  to  the  glowing  imagination  of 
an  Oriental  poet,  he  seized  it  with  avidity,  without  any  regard  to  the 
dissimilarity  of  the  objects  in  other  respects.  The  beauty  of  some  of 
the  boldest  of  these  comparisons  may  be  felt  by  us ;  though  others 
appear,  to  our  colder  imaginations,  rather  harsh.  For  example,  when 
a  beautiful  virgin  is  compared  to  an  enclosed  garden  and  a  fountain 
sealed  up  (Sol.  Song  4:  12),  we  are  at  no  loss  to  perceive  the  appro- 
priateness and  <the  exquisite  beauty  of  the  image  :  but  when  a  lady's 
hair  is  compared  to  a  flock  of  goats,  and  her  teeth  to  a  flock  of 
newly  washed  sheep,  (Song  6:  5,  6) ;  her  neck  to  a  tower  of  ivory, 
her  eyes  to  the  fountains  of  Hcshbon,  and  her  nose  to  the  tower  of 
Lebanon,  (Song  7:  4) ;  the  effect  on  our  feelings  is  not  the  same  as 
that  produced  on  the  feelings  of  an  Oriental.  Imagery  of  this  sort  is 
not  confined  to  Solomon's  Song :  it  is  still  in  use,  and  indeed  car- 
ried much  further  by  the  Oriental  poets  of  the  present  day.  An 
Arabic  poet,  describing  the  beauties  of  a  female,  says  : 

"  Her  eyebrows  are  like  bows,  shooting  deadly  arrows; 

Her  nose  like  the  point  of  a  sword  ; 

Her  mouth  like  the  signet  of  Solomon  ; 
"  Her  cheeks  like  the  anemone  (wind-flower)  ; 

Her  two  lips  are  two  opals ; 

Her  teeth  are  pearls  set  in  coral ; 

She  has  a  forehead  like  the  new  moon, 
"  And  lips  sweeter  than  the  honey-comb,  and  cooler  than  pure  water  ', 

Her  neck  is  like  the  bamboo  of  India ; 

Her  bosom  like  a  swelling  fountain  ; 

Her  breasts  like  pomegranates  ; 
"  Her  belly  like  silk,  having  fold  on  fold ; 
"  Her  navel  is  anointed  with  ointment  of  myrrh." 

(See  Sir  William  Jones,  Comment,  p.  140). 

With  this  description  compare  Sol.  Song  vn. 

In  judging  of  figures  of  this  sort,  we  should  remember  that  they 
are  not  used  for  illustration  merely,  but  also  for  ornament  and  for 
amplification  ;  and  if  the  comparison  does  not  always  make  the  sub- 
ject clearer,  the  end  of  the  poet  is  attained,  if  it  give  beauty  or  ful- 
ness to  the  description.  Homer,  in  some  of  his  comparisons,  ex- 
hibits all  the  freedom  of  an  Oriental  ;  for  example,  (Odyss.  V.  to- 
wards the  close),  where  he  compares  Ulysses  sleeping,  covered  with 
leaves,  to  a  coal  of  fire  buried  in  the  ashes. 

In  every  nation  the  language  of  common  life  abounds  in  meta- 
phorical expressions,  which  are  used  so  frequently  and  so  exclusive- 
43 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI. 


ly  in  their  figurative  sense,  that  they  lose  their  metaphorical  appear- 
ance, and  when  they  occur,  the  acquired  meaning  of  the  words  only 
is  suggested,  and  their  original  literal  signification  is  disregarded. 
Thus,  from  the  veins  of  the  animal  body,  we  speak  of  a  vein  of  ore 
in  the  earth  ;  and  thence,  of  a  vein  of  humour,  a  vein  of  poetry,  etc. ; 
and  these  expressions  have  now  become  so  familiar,  that  we  no  lon- 
ger regard  them  as  metaphors.  Metaphorical  phrases  of  this  sort, 
in  different  climates  and  among  different  people,  are  derived  from 
different  objects.  Thus,  what  we  call  the  eye  of  a  needle,  the  Ger- 
mans call  its  ear ;  what  we  denominate  an  arm  of  the  sea,  the  He- 
brews, Arabians,  and  other  Orientals,  denominate  a  tongue  of  the 
sea  (Josh.  15:  2,  5.  18:  19.  Is.  11:  15).  What  in  one  language  is 
usually  expressed  literally,  in  another  is  usually  expressed  by  a  met- 
aphor ;  for  example,  we  speak  of  aflame  ofjire,  but  the  Hebrews 
of  a  tongue  of  Jirc,  (Is.  5:  24.  comp.  Acts  2:  3.  and  Virg.  Aen.  II. 
684). 

The  language  of  poetry  is  influenced  by  the  language  of  com- 
mon life,  and  the  metaphors  in  popular  use  are  frequently  by  poets 
extended,  applied  to  different  subjects,  and  couched  in  expressions 
more  bold,  brief,  and  elegant ;  though  still,  from  the  analogy  which 
they  bear  to  the  language  of  common  life,  they  are  perfectly  intelli- 
gible to  contemporary  readers  of  the  same  nation,  and  free  from  all 
appearance  of  harshness.  When,  therefore,  we  examine  the  poetry 
of  an  ancient  people,  with  a  climate  and  modes  of  life  very  different 
from  our  own,  of  whose  popular  language  we  are  almost  entirely 
ignorant,  (for  such  is  our  condition  in  regard  to  the  Hebrews), 
it  is  not  at  all  surprising  that  we  find  many  metaphors  which  to  us 
appear  unmeaning  and  harsh,  though  to  them,  perspicuous  and  ele- 
gant. Interpreters  investigate  the  etymology  of  words,  and  ascer- 
tain their  primitive  and  literal  meaning,  which  they  apply  to  all  the 
places  where  the  words  in  question  occur,  or  resort  to  metaphor  to 
help  them  out  of  difficulty  ;  when  perhaps,  in  the  time  of  the  poet, 
the  literal  signification  of  the  phrase  had  long  been  obsolete,  and 
the  metaphorical  had  become  the  only  meaning.  As  if  the  English 
should  become  a  dead  language,  and  some  laborious  commentator 
of  future  ages,  finding  the  phrase  vein  of  poetry,  should  explain  it 
by  saying,  that  the  writer  borrowed  this  expression  from  the  veins 
of  the  human  body,  and  applied  it  to  the  person  of  whom  he  was 
speaking,  because  he  was  such  a  poetic  genius  that  poetry  seemed 
to  circulate  quite  through  him,  and  to  be  all  his  life,  as  is  the  case 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI.  339 


with  blood  in  regard  to  the  body  ;    and  should  then  go  on  to  expa- 
tiate upon  the  great  beauty  and  expressiveness  of  this  image  !     S. 

[B .  p.  53.]     Imagery  borrowed  from,  plants  and  the  heavenly  bodies. 

The  frequent  recurrence  for  metaphorical  expressions  to  natural 
objects,  and  particularly  to  plants  and  to  trees,  is  so  characteristic  of 
the  Hebrew  poetry,  that  it  might  be  almost  called  the  botanical  po- 
etry. This  circumstance,  however,  is  not  at  all  extraordinary,  if  we 
consider  that  the  greater  part  of  that  people  were  occupied  with  til- 
ling the  earth,  and  keeping  their  flocks ;  and  further,  that  the  culti- 
vation of  poetry,  instead  of  being  confined  to  the  learned,  was  so  gen- 
erally diffused,  that  every  valley  reechoed  the  songs  of  the  shepherds. 
Hence  in  the  very  few  remains  of  the  Hebrew  writings  which  are 
come  down  to  us,  I  mean  the  Scriptures,  there  are  upwards  of  250 
botanical  terms,  which  none  use  so  frequently  as  the  poets  :  and  this 
circumstance  I  think  gives  an  air  of  pastoral  elegance  to  their  poet- 
ry, which  any  modern  writer  will  emulate  in  vain. 

It  is,  however,  extraordinary,  that  the  stars  should  be  so  seldom 
mentioned  in  the  Hebrew  poetry,  for  the  names  of  not  more  than 
three  or  four  occur  in  the  whole  Bible.  It  has  been  said,  that  the 
patriarchal  shepherds  applied  very  much  to  the  study  of  astronomy ; 
but  if  so,  whence  is  it,  that  we  meet  with  such  frequent  allusions  to 
botanical  subjects,  and  so  few  to  the  heavenly  luminaries  ?  A  com- 
et is,  however,  I  think,  spoken  of  in  Numb.  xxiv.  17,  and  in  allu- 
sion to  David  ;  but  it  is  by  Balaam,  who,  residing  on  the  borders  of 
the  Euphrates,  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  was  not  altogether  unac- 
quainted with  the  Babylonish  sciences.  MICHAELIS. 

There  appears  but  little  foundation  for  this  last  remark  of  the 
learned  professor.  For  in  reality,  so  little  are  the  heavenly  bodies 
subjects  of  poetic  allusion,  that  we  find  them  but  seldom  introduced 
into  any  poetry  either  ancient  or  modern.  Our  annotator  seems  to 
forget  that  poetry  is  no  more  than  painting  in  language,  and  has  not 
respect  to  names  but  appearances.  The  appearance  of  every  star  is 
nearly  the  same,  and  consequently  they  can  furnish  no  great  variety 
of  imagery,  and  that  can  only  relate  to  their  general  qualities,  their 
splendour,  etc. ;  whereas  the  nature  and  visible  qualities  of  plants  are 
infinitely  diversified,  and  therefore  admit  of  a  much  greater  variety 
of  allusion.  Indeed  a  poem,  the  principal  imagery  of  which  consist- 
ed of  the  names  of  stars,  would  be  a  very  strange  and  a  very  dull 
production.  We  cannot  argue  from  the  silence  of  the  Hebrew  po- 


840  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI. 

etry,  that  Moses  or  the  writers  of  the  Scriptures  were  ignorant  of  as- 
tronomy ;  neither  is  it  fair  to  suppose  that  a  nation  of  shepherds,  in 
the  serene  country  of  the  East,  were  unacquainted  with  the  hosts  of 
heaven,  which,  in  truth,  from  these  causes,  were  the  objects  of  ado- 
ration, and  even  of  worship,  in  those  parts,  as  appears  from  the  Pre- 
face to  Mr.  WOOD'S  Account  of  the  Ruins  of  Balbec.  GREGORY. 

[C.  p.  56.]     ISAIAH  xxxvn.  24. 

In  this  passage  Lebanon  scarcely  seems  to  be  used  for  Jerusa- 
lem. Vs.  24  and  25  contain  the  boasting  menace  of  Sennacherib, 
and  seem  to  refer  to  his  threatened  subjugation  of  the  whole  king- 
dom of  Israel,  by  seizing  the  passes  to  the  country  (of  which  Leba- 
non was  one  of  the  most  difficult),  taking  possession  of  the  strong 
holds,  and  cutting  off  the  princes  and  warriors.  (See  Rosenmuel- 
ler  and  Gesenius  in  loc. ;  comp.  Jer.  22:  6,  23;  Zech.  11:  1 — 3; 
Isa.  14:  8).  S. 

PSALM  LXVIII.  31.  nag  n*h  "i§a  • 

rt5j?  n*h,- "  The  wild  beast  of  the  reeds,"  is  a  periphrasis  for 
"  the  lion ;"  and  that  by  no  means  obscure,  if  we  bestow  upon  it  a 
little  attention.  The  lions  make  their  dens  very  commonly  among 
the  reeds.  "  Innumerable  lions  wander  about  among  the  reeds  and 
copses  on  the  borders  of  the  rivers  in  Mesopotamia."  AM.  MAR.  Lib. 
xviii.  c.  7.  This  is  so  familiar  to  the  Arabs,  that  they  have  a  par- 
ticular name  for  the  den  or  haunt  of  a  lion,  when  it  is  formed  among 
the  reeds.  BOCHART,  Hieroz.  Par.  I.  Lib.  iii.  c.  2.  The  river  Jor- 
dan was  particularly  infested  with  lions,  which  concealed  themselves 
among  the  thick  reeds  upon  the  banks.  JOHAN.  PHOCAS.  Descrip. 
Loc.  Sanct.  c.  23.  See  also  MAUNDREL'S  Travels.  JEROME  upon 
these  words  of  Zechariah  xi.  3,  "  The  voice  of  the  roaring  of 
young  lions,  for  the  pride  of  Jordan  is  spoiled."  "  With  the  river 
Jordan  (says  he)  which  is  the  largest  in  Judea,  and  near  which  there 
are  many  lions,  the  prophet  associates  the  roaring  of  those  animals, 
on  account  of  the  heat  of  the  climate,  the  vicinity  to  the  desert,  the 
extent  of  that  vast  wilderness,  the  reeds  and  the  deep  sedge  which 
grow  about  it."  Hence  in  Jer.  iv.  7,  the  lion  is  said  to  go  forth 
1313073  (from  his  thicket;)  and  xlix.  19,  "  to  ascend  from  the  over- 
flowing of  Jordan." — In  this  place,  therefore,  (Psalm  Ixviii.  31)  the 
wild  beast  of  the  reeds,  the  herd  of  the  strong,  and  the  calves,  are 
the  lions,  the  bulls,  and  the  beasts  wantoning  about,  or  in  plain 


I 
NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI.  341 


terms,  the  fierce  and  insolent  tyrants :  of  whom,  by  a  continuation 
of  the  metaphor,  the  prophet  adds,  "  each  of  them  eagerly"  (for 
there  is  that  force  in  the  distributive  in  the  singular  number,  and  in 
the  conjugation  Hithpael)  "  striking  with  their  feet,  and  disturbing 
the  silver,  or  perhaps  desirable  rivers  ;"  that  is,  destroying,  and  lay- 
ing waste  the  pleasant  places  of  Judea.  This  very  image  is  adopted 
by  Ezekiel,  xxxii.  2,  and  again  xxxiv.  18,  19,  in  which  places 
the  verb  tofin  thrice  occurs  in  that  sense  ;  see  also  Dan.  vii.  19. 
But  whether  yi  i  be  spoken  of  the  motion  of  the  river,  as  in  the 
Latin  currere  (Vmc.  Georg.  I.  132)  so  as  to  signify  the  river,  is  not 
altogether  so  plain.  LOWTH. 

It  seems  most  probable,  however,  that  by  rt3j?  rpft  the  crocodile 
is  designated  ;  and  the  interpretation  of  Rosenrnueller  is  to  me  the 
most  satisfactory,  which  I  will  give  in  his  own  words  : 

"  Nobis  quidem  minime  est  dubium,  genuinam  loci  nostri  inter- 
pretationem  petendam  esse  ex  Ezechiele  xxxii.  2,  ubi  regem  Aegyp- 
ti  vates  ita  alloquitur  :  Tu  gentium  leoni,  i.  e.  grassanti  inter  gentes, 
similis  es,  et  quasi  quidam  draco  in  aequoribus  (crocodilum  signifi- 
cat  Nilo  flumini  familiarem,  vid.  nostram  ad  eum  loc.  not.)  qui  per 
fluvios  tuos  ruens  aquas  pedibus  turbas,  Dn'in3  o'snrn  et  conculcas 
flumina  eorum,  populorum,  G*ia,  quod  praecessit,  i.  e.  exercitus  eo- 
rum,  coll.  lesai.  viii.  7.  Hinc  nostro  Psalmorum  loco  DS^n73  (col- 
lective accipiendum)  interpretamur  continue  conculcantes ,  scil.  alios, 
sive,  subauditis  e  loco  Ezecheliano  vocibus  fi^ia  niinS  flumina 
gentium,  hoc  sensu  :  Increpaferam  arundinis,  i.  e.  ut  recte  Michae- 
lis  in  nota  quae  proxime  praecessit,  crocodilum  in  arundinetis  ad  Ni- 
lum  (vid.  Exod.  ii.  3.  lesai.  xix.  6)  degentem,  coetumque  taurorum 
cum  vitulis  popular  urn,  qui  continuo  concultant  alios.  Formam 
Hithpael  nori  semper  significationem  intransitivam  s.  reciprocam, 
sed  baud  raro  activam  eamque  frequentativam  habere  constat.  Sic 
Genes,  v.  22.  xvii.  1.  DVfbfitTiN  ?j]p.nn!l  ambulavit  continuo  cum 
Deo  ;  1  Sam.  x.  6.  13.  fcO:nft  prophetavit  continuo  ;  2  Reg.  xix. 
20.  ^jor\n  frequenter  precatus  est;  Esth.  iv.  8.  l^nlTf  indesinentcr 
gratiam  altcrius  exoravit.  Verba  S|tp<-<12g'i3  vero  interpreter  prop- 
ter  fragmina  argenti,  i.  e.  qui  conculcant  et  opprimunt  alios  opurn 
et  divitiarum  acquirendarum  caussa ;  ut  in  carmine  Deborae  trium- 
phali  (quod  Psalmi  LXVTII.  quasi  aQ%tivnov  est)  Ammonitae  popu- 
lum  Israeliticum  eum  in  finem  bello  aggressi  innuuntur,  ut  ex  eorum 
spoliis  magnas  opes  auferrent ;  sed  illos  omnibus  castris  exutos,  fu- 
sos  fugatosque  hoc  fine  excidisse  docet  poetria  Jud.  v.  19.  Vcnc- 


342  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI, 


runt,  inquit,  reges,  pugnarunt,  pugnarunt  Canaanis  reges  in  Thaan- 
achjuxta  aquas  Megiddo,  Ihgb  tfb  P)DD  ys%  sed  frustum  argenti 
non  acceperunt"  S. 

[D.  p.  57.]     Poetic  imagery  from  the  objects  of  nature. 

We  must  not  omit  noticing,  in  this  place,  those  images  which 
are  derived  from  rivers  and  fountains,  and  the  earth  recreated  with 
rain ;  which  are  indeed  used  by  our  poets,  but  more  frequently  by 
the  Orientals.  For  the  scarcity  of  water,  and  the  extreme  heat  of 
the  summer,  together  with  the  wonderful  fertility  of  the  soil,  when 
watered,  render  this  a  more  elegant  and  jocund  comparison  in  the 
East  than  with  us.  In  spring  and  summer,  if  the  east  wind  con- 
tinues to  blow  a  few  days,  the  fields  are  in  general  so  parched,  that 
scarcely  a  blade  of  any  thing  green  remains;  many  rivers  and 
streams  are  dried  up,  the  others  are  rendered  briny,  and  all  nature 
seems  at  the  point  of  dissolution.  After  a  plentiful  shower,  however, 
the  fields  revive  beyond  all  expectation,  the  rivers  resume  their 
course,  and  the  springs  pour  forth  more  delicious  water.  Mahomet 
makes  use  of  this  idea  frequently,  as  figurative  of  the  resurrection ; 
and  in  this  he  shews  himself  no  less  of  a  philosopher  than  a  poet. 
Dr.  Russel  has  described  this  regeneration  of  nature  in  most  lively 
colours  in  his  Natural  History  of  Aleppo,  a  book  which  every  man 
ought  to  read,  who  wishes  not  only  literally  to  understand  the  Orien- 
tal writers,  but  to  feel  them.  Indeed,  for  want  of  this,  many  simi- 
les appear  to  us  bold  and  unusual,  which  among  the  Orientals  have 
a  proper  and  distinct  signification.  CAAB,  an  Arabic  poet,  who  was 
contemporary  with  Mahomet,  in  one  of  his  poems  compares  the  teeth 
of  a  young  lady  when  she  smiled  to  wine  mixed  with  water,  in  which 
remained  bubbles  of  yesterday's  rain.  In  Isaiah  there  are  many  al- 
lusions of  this  nature,  the  favourable  or  adverse  state  of  the  nations 
being  frequently  expressed  by  this  image,  which  many  commenta- 
tors have  attempted  to  explain  with  more  exactness  than  a  poetical 
idea  will  bear.  They  have  taken  what  the  poet  meant  figuratively 
sometimes  in  a  literal  sense ;  and  at  other  times  they  have  explained 
every  thing  in  a  mystical  manner,  and  have  pretended  to  define  what 
is  meant  by  the  water,  who  are  those  that  are  thirsty,  etc.  etc.,  in- 
termingling many  very  pious  reflections,  but  utterly  foreign  to  the 
subject,  and  such  as  never  once  entered  the  mind  of  the  poet.  For 
it  certainly  was  not  the  intention  of  the  prophet  to  write  enigmas, 
but  to  illustrate  and  adorn  the  beautiful  figure  which  he  introduces* 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI. 


Thus,  xxxv.  6,  7,  speaking  of  the  happy  state  of  Palestine,  at  the 
time  that  Idumea  was  laid  waste  and  subdued  : 

"  The  desert,  and  the  waste,  shall  be  glad  ; 

"  And  the  wilderness  shall  rejoice  and  flourish  : 

"  For  in  the  wilderness  shall  burst  forth  waters, 

"  And  torrents  in  the  desert  : 

"  And  the  glowing  sand  shall  become  a  pool, 

"  And  the  thirsty  soil  bubbling  springs  : 

"  And  in  the  haunt  of  dragons  shall  spring  forth 

"  The  grass,  with  the  reed,  and  the  bulrush." 

It  is  however  to  be  remarked,  that  the  level  ground  suffers  most  from 
the  intolerable  heat,  and  that  the  deserts  are  almost  destitute  of 
water.  He  amplifies  the  same  image  in  a  different  manner  in 
xxxv.  17,  celebrating  the  return  of  the  Israelites  from  the  Babylo- 
nian exile  : 

"  The  poor  and  the  needy  seek  for  water,  and  there  is  none  ; 

"  Their  tongue  is  parched  with  thirst  : 

"  I  Jehovah  will  answer  them  ; 

"  The  God  of  Israel,  I  will  not  forsake  them. 

"  I  will  open  in  the  high  places  rivers  ; 

"  And  in  the  midst  of  valleys,  fountains  ; 

"  I  will  make  the  desert  a  standing  pool  ; 

"  And  the  dry  ground  streams  of  waters. 

"  In  the  wilderness  I  will  give  the  cedar  ; 

"  The  acacia,  the  myrtle,  and  the  tree  producing  oil  : 

"  I  will  plant  the  fir-tree  in  the  desert, 

"  The  pine  and  the  box  together." 

This  is  admirable  painting,  and  displays  a  most  happy  boldness  of 
invention  ;  the  trees  of  different  kinds  transplanted  from  their  native 
soils  to  grow  together  in  the  desert  ;  the  fir-tree  and  the  pine,  which 
are  indigenous  to  Lebanon,  to  which  snow  and  rain,  and  an  im- 
mense quantity  of  moisture,  seem  almost  essential  ;  the  olive,  which 
is  the  native  of  Jerusalem  ;  the  Egyptian  thorn,  indigenous  to  Ara- 
bia ;  both  of  them  requiring  a  dry  soil  ;  and  the  myrtle,  which 
flourishes  most  on  the  sea-shore.  The  same  image  occurs  xxxiii. 
18  —  20,  but  placed  in  a  different  light.  The  poet  feigns  in  this 
place,  that  the  wild  beasts  of  the  desert,  and  the  dragons  themselves, 
which  had  been  afflicted  with  thirst,  pour  forth  their  nocturnal  cries 
in  thankfulness  to  God  for  sending  rain  upon  the  desert.  See 
also  xxxiv.  3,  4.  Sometimes  in  the  district  of  Jerusalem,  which 
by  nature  is  a  very  dry  soil,  and  in  which  there  are  few  streams,  an 
immense  flood  is  seen  to  burst  forth,  and  with  irresistible  violence 


344  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VI. 

fall  into  the  Dead  Sea,  so  that  its  water,  which  is  more  salt  than  that 
of  any  other  sea,  is  rendered  sweet.  Gihon  seems  to  have  afforded 
the  basis  of  the  above  description,  a  rivulet  which  proceeds  from 
Sion,  when  perhaps  some  uncommon  flood  had  prodigiously  increas- 
ed it.  If  I  am  not  mistaken,  David  was  the  first  who  made  use  of 
this  bold  figure,  but  with  such  a  degree  of  modesty  as  becomes  the 
author  who  first  introduced  it,  Psal.  xlvi.  2 — 6.  I  suspect  some- 
thing of  the  kind  indeed  to  have  happened  about  the  time  of  his  com- 
posing that  Psalm,  for  it  is  usual  in  earthquakes  for  some  streams  to 
be  entirely  drained,  while  others  overflow.  But  his  imitators,  in 
their  ardour  for  novelty,  have  gone  far  beyond  him.  Thus  Joel  in- 
termingles with  this  figure  the  picture  of  the  golden  age,  iii.  18. 

'  The  mountains  shall  drop  down  new  wine, 

'  And  the  hills  shall  flow  with  milk, 

'  And  all  the  rivers  of  Judah  shall  flow  with  water, 

;  And  a  fountain  shall  flow  from  the  house  of  Jehovah, 

'  And  shall  water  the  valley  of  Shittirn."  MICHAEUS. 

Earthquakes  and  tempests  afford  a  copious  source  of  imagery  to 
the  Hebrew  poets.  Compare  Ps.  xvm.  Is.  24  :  19,  20.  Jer.  51 : 
25,  26.  The  pains  of  childbearing  are  also  very  frequently  referred 
to  in  the  sacred  poetry,  and  sometimes  in  connexions  where  we 
should  least  expect  it.  See  Is.  26:  17,  18.  42:  14,  15. 

Rosenmueller  observes  that  the  description  to  which  Michaelis 
refers  in  the  preceding  note  is  not  to  be  found  in  Dr.  Russell's  Nat- 
ural History  of  Aleppo,  but  in  the  Appendix  to  Shaw's  Travels. 
He  also  quotes  a  passage  on  the  same  subject  from  Th.  Hyde  in 
Notis  ad  Ab.  Perizolii  Itinera  Mundi,  p.  10  (edit.  sec.  Oxon.  1767)  as 
follows : 

"  Nomen  &^/-^ ,  fiplla,  splendor  em,  seu  splendentem  regionem 
denotat,  cilm  ea  regio  (Libya  deserta)  radiis  solaribus  tam  copiose 
collustretur,  ut  reflexum  ab  arenis  lumen  adeo  intense  fulgens  a  lon- 
ginquo  spectantibus  aquarum  speciem  referat,  et  hicce  arenarum 
splendor  Arabibus  (ex  lingua  Persica  petito  nomine)  dicitur  O'  /•*« 
Ser — db,  i.  e.  aquae  superficies,  seu  superficialis  aquarum  species. 
Haecque  visus  deceptio,  proh  dolor  !  saepe  illudit  siticulosos  viato- 
res,  qui  inter  calidissimas  istas  arenas  aquae  refrigerium  avidissi- 
me  expetentes,  ad  longinqua  loca  dicto  modo  resplendentia,  spe  frus- 
trata,  baud  raro  contendere  solent." 

It  may  gratify  the  reader  to  present  him  with  the  verses  of  Caab, 
the  Arabic  poet,  which  are  referred  to  by  Michaelis  in  the  preced- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VII.  345 

ing  note.  The  Latin  translation  subjoined,  is  by  Rosenmueller. 
The  Arabic  is  taken  from  an  edition  of  the  poem  published  by  G.  I. 
Lette,  Lugd.  Batav.  1748,  4to. 

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i 
y  c  i       t  c  i          /   o  /     /    »/  c-c  i 

^4^0    (f&j         CEAff        lKA^    cJl^ 


"  Denies  denundat  candidos  ubi  subridet, 

"  Vino  tcmperatum  referens  laticem, 

"  Cum  vinum  miscetur  frigida  unda,  de  loci  reconditi  aqua, 

"  Limpida  per  vallem  labente,  ventoque  refrigerata  boreali, 

"  A  qua  venti  repulerunt  sordes,  quaraque  super  eminent 

"  Do  imbris  nocturnae  effusione  albae  bullae.  S. 


NOTES  ON   LECTURE  VII. 

[A.  p.  64.]     Imagery  derived  from  sepulchres. 

See  a  description  of  these  sepulchres,  SERLIO,  Architettura,  L. 
iii. ;  VILLALPANDUS,  Apparat.  Urb.  iii.  16 ;  MAUNDREL'S  Travels, 
p.  76. 

Josephus  makes  frequent  mention  of  the  sepulchre  of  David. 
He  calls  the  sepulchre  itself  ra(fov  or  fivypct ;  and  the  chambers, 
into  many  of  which  the  sepulchre  was  divided,  oixou?  rovg  6v  zo> 
/M^/iart ;  the  cells  #?;xaff.  Antiq.  vii.  15.  xv.  7  ;  Bell  i.  2.  The 
sepulchres  of  the  Egyptian  monarchs  are  described  by  Strabo,  Lib. 
xvii.  "  About  forty  cells  are  cut  in  the  caves."  Of  the  remains  of 
44 


346 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VII. 


which  see  a  description  in  POCOCKE'S  Description  of  the  East,  B.  ii. 
c.  3.  There  are  still  remaining  at  Naples  certain  sepulchral  vaults 
called  Catacombs,  which  have  not  been  exceeded  in  grandeur  by  any 
similar  work  of  man.  They  appear  to  me,  indeed,  to  be  a  monu- 
ment of  the  most  remote  antiquity,  which,  though  originally  appro- 
priated to  some  other  use,  about  the  Christian  sera  were  made  use 
of  as  burial-places.  They  are  evidently  of  the  same  kind  with  other 
subterraneous  works  of  that  country,  many  of  which  have  been  de- 
stroyed by  earthquakes,  but  many  remain  at  this  day  at  Cumae,  Mi- 
senum,  Baiae,  the  lake  of  Averno,  and  mount  Posilypo.  I  have  no 
doubt  but  these  works  were  antecedent  to  the  time  of  Homer,  who 
describes  them  as  inhabited  by  the  Cimmerians,  a  people  who  live 
in  perpetual  darkness,  (Odyss.  ix.  sub.  init.)  as  Ephorus  in  STRABO, 
Lib.  v.  says  of  them,  "  that  they  live  in  certain  subterraneous  dwel- 
lings, which  they  call  Argillas,  and  associate  with  one  another  by 
narrow  fosses  or  passages  ;"  and  the  remaining  monuments  demon- 
strate this  account  not  to  be  altogether  fabulous.  These  caves  are 
called  Argillas,  from  the  nature  of  the  soil  in  which  I  believe  they 
are  usually  dug.  "  Argil,  or  that  kind  of  earth  which  is  used  for 
cleansing,  is  white  clay,"  HESYCH.  ;  whence  a  hill  between  Puteoli 
and  Naples  was  called  Leucogaeus,  PLIN.  Nat.  Hist.  viii.  11 ;  although 
those  mentioned  above  are  all  hewn  out  of  the  solid  grit,  in  order  to 
resist  the  injuries  of  time.  Hence  Argiletum,  the  name  of  a  street 
in  Rome,  taken  from  some  Argil  of  this  kind,  such  as  formed  the 
cave  of  Cacus,  which  was  not  far  from  that  street ;  though  Virgil 
does  not  favour  this  opinion ;  see  however  Varro  de  Ling.  Lat.  Lib. 
iv.  It  is  evident  that  Homer  first,  and  Virgil  after  him,  derived  their 
notions  of  the  infernal  regions  from  these  Cimmerian  caves  of  Cam- 
pania ;  and  when  Virgil  is  describing  the  cave  of  Cacus,  when  for- 
ced open  by  Hercules,  the  image  of  the  infernal  state  immediately 
occurs  : 

"  At  specus,  et  Caci  detecta  apparuit  ingens 
"  Regia,  et  umbrosae  penitus  patuere  cavernae  : 
"  Non  secus,  ac  si  qua  penitus  vi  terra  dehiscens 
"  Infernas  reseret  sedes,  et  regna  recludat 
"  Pallida,  Dis  invisa,  superque  immane  barathrum 
"  Cernatur,  trepidentque  immisso  lumine  manes."   JEn.  viu.  241. 

LOWTH. 

All  the  southern  parts  of  Palestine  contiguous  to  Arabia,  were 
furnished  with  immense  caverns,  which  were  originally  inhabited  by 
the  D'Sft  (Gen.  14:  6.  36:  20—30  ;  compare  Deut.  2  :  12,  22  ;  Je- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VII.  347 


tome,  Comment,  in  Obad.  v.  4) ;  the  Troglodytes  [Horites]  of 
Scripture,  who  were  subsequently  expelled  by  the  Edomites.  These 
extensive  and  gloomy  caves,  with  their  fierce  and  cruel  inhabitants, 
might  afford  at  least  as  apt  a  picture  of  the  infernal  regions,  as  the 
Cimmerians  of  Homer  and  Virgil.  S. 

[B.  p.  64.]     Sheol  and  its  inhabitants. 

There  is  a  passage  in  Cicero  (Tusc.  Quaest.  L.  I.  c.  16)  illustra- 
tive of  the"  almost  universal  prevalence  of  the  notion  of  a  subterrane- 
an world  in  ancient  times,  even  among  those  people  who  had  no  se- 
pulchres of  the  kind  to  which  our  author  refers  in  this  Lecture  and 
the  preceding  note. 

"  Sed  ut  deos  esse  natura  opinamur,  qualesque  sint,  ratione  cog- 
noscimus  ;  sic  permanere  animos  arbitramur  consensu  nationum  om- 
nium :  qua  in  sede  maneant,  qualesque  sint,  ratione  discendum  est. 
Cuius  ignoratio  finxit  inferos,  easque  formidines,  quas  tu  contemne- 
re  non  sine  causa  videbare.  In  terram  enim  cadentibus  corporibus, 
hisque  humo  tectis,  a  quo  dictum  est  kumari,  sub  terra  censebant  re- 
liquam  vitam  agi  mortuorum  j  quam  eorum  opinionem  magni  errores 
consecuti  sunt,  quos  auxerunt  poetae." 

In  the  J?iN*ii  or  under-world  of  the  Hebrews  there  is  something 
peculiarly  grand  and  awful.  It  was  an  immense  region,  a  vast  sub- 
terranean kingdom  (Isa.  14:  9.  Jer.  5:  14.  Job  26:  6),  involved  in 
thick  darkness  (Job  10:  21,  22),  filled  with  deep  vallies  (Prov.  9: 
18),  and  shut  up  with  strong  gates  (Isa.  38:  10) ;  and  from  it  there 
was  no  possibility  of  escape  (Job  7:  9, 10).  Thither  whole  hosts  of 
men  went  down  at  once  (Num.  16:  30  ff.) ;  heroes  and  armies  with 
all  their  trophies  of  victory,  kings  and  their  people,  were  found  there 
(Isa.  14:  9—20.  Ezek.  31:  14,  16,  17,  18.  xxxii) ;  where  they  had 
a  sort  of  shadowy  existence,  as  manes  or  ghosts,  neither  entirely 
spiritual  nor  entirely  material,  engaged  in  the  employments  of  their 
earthly  life,  though  destitute  of  strength  and  physical  substance, 
(Eccl.  9:  4—6.  Job  3:  13—19.  Compare  4:  15,  16). 

The  inhabitants  of  bitf'IJ  are  called  D\\D"l,  that  is,  weak,  power- 
less; shades,  (Ps.  88:  10.  Prov.  2 :  18.  9 :  18.  21 :  16.  Isa.  14:  9. 
26:  14,  19  ;  compare  14:  10).  This  is  the  explanation  of  Gesenius, 
who  supposes  the  word  NSp  to  be  the  same  as  nEn,  asleep,  weak ; 
from  the  verb  r»D~i,  to  fall  asleep,  to  sink  down. 

A  similar  representation  of  the  shadowy  and  powerless  condition 
of  the  departed,  and  of  their  employments,  is  given  by  Hqniqr  (Odyss. 


348  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VII. 

xi),  and  after  him  by  Virgil  (^En.  vi.)  See  also  Ossian's  Poems, 
where  the  old  Celtic  heroes  are  represented  as  seated  in  the  clouds, 
witnessing  the  deeds  of  their  descendants,  and  attempting  again  to 
seize  their  swords,  which,  like  vapour  or  mist,  elude  their  grasp. 

But  fc^NB^  is  the  word  used  to  denote  giants ;  and  how  came  the 
same  word  to  designate  the  manes  of  the  departed  ?  Gesenius  main- 
tains that  the  word  as  applied  to  giants  has  a  different  origin  ;  that 
in  this  sense  it  was  originally  a  gentile  noun,  denoting  the  sons  of 
Rapha  (nenn  ^T*?>  2  Sam-  21:  16,  18),  a  gigantic  tribe  of  Ca- 
naanites  (Gen.' 14:  5.'  15:  20.  Deut.  3:  11.  Isa.  17:  15),  and  after- 
wards applied  to  all  giants. 

Most  critics,  however,  have  supposed  the  words  to  be  of  the  same 
origin ;  though  they  have  adopted  different  modes  of  accounting  for 
the  application  of  the  term  giants  to  the  ghosts  of  the  dead  in  Sheol. 
Michaelis  is  of  the  opinion,  that  after  the  gigantic  Troglodytes 
(B?in,  ply  133,  tPKB-i)  were  expelled  by  the  Edomites  (Deut.  2: 
12,  22),  their  caverns  were  left  uninhabited ;  and  that  afterwards 
they  were  regarded  as  the  abodes  of  the  infernal  deities  and  of 
ghosts,  and  from  this  circumstance  all  ghosts  were  called  tTND^ . 
(Note  in  Lowth,  p.  466).  Herder  supposes  that  the  giants  of  the 
old  world  (Gen.  6:  4),  who  were  destroyed  by  the  flood,  first  gave 
occasion  to  the  idea  of  a  kingdom  of  the  dead  ;  and  that  from  them 
all  its  inhabitants  were  called  G^D-\ ,  (Geist,  Th.  I.  S.  198).  Ro- 
senmueller,  with  more  probability,  supposes  the  appellation  to  have 
arisen  from  the  gigantic  size  which  spectres  are  always  represented 
as  assuming  when  they  appear  to  men.  (Schol.  in  Gen.  14:  5). 
This  opinion  seems  to  be  confirmed  by  various  passages  of  the  hea- 
then poets.  For  example : 

"  Infelix  simulacrum,  atque  ipsius  umbra  Creusae, 
"  Visa  mihi  ante  oculos,  et  nota  major  imago." 

VIRGIL,  jEn.  II.  772. 
"  Saepe  simulacris  domus  attonita  magnis." 

SENECA  in  Thyeste. 
"  Simulacra  virum  majora  vivis."  Idem  in  Oedipo. 

The  locus  dassicus  on  this  subject  is  Isa.  xiv.  A  thorough  dis- 
cussion of  all  the  passages  in  the  Old  Testament  relating  to  the 
Sheol  of  the  Hebrews,  may  be  found  in  Sheid's  Dissertatio  in  Can- 
ticum  Hiskiae,  Jes.  xxxviii.  9 — 20,  Lugd.  Bat.  8vo.  1769.  (Com- 
pare also  Herder,  Geist,  Th.  I.  S.  192  ff). 

Such  was  the  popular  notion  in  regard  to  Sheol,  and  such  the 
poetic  representation  of  that  shadowy  empire  ;  but  that  the  ancient 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VII.  349 

Hebrews  had,  besides  this,  a  religious  belief  in  the  immortality  of 
the  soul  and  a  future  state  of  retribution,  may  be  made  evident  by 
examining  a  few  passages  of  their  Scriptures.  Gen.  5:  24  compared 
with  Heb.  11:5.  And  Enoch  walked  with  God,  and  he  was  not : 
for  God  took  him. — By  faith  Enoch  was  translated,  that  he  should 
not  see  death  ;  and  was  not  found  because  God  had  translated  Mm  : 
for  before  his  translation  he  had  this  testimony,  that  he  pleased  God. 
If  there  had  been  no  belief  in  a  future  state  of  rewards  for  the  right- 
eous, how  could  Enoch's  removal  from  the  earth  have  been  viewed 
as  a  token  of  the  approbation  of  God ;  especially  as  early  or  sudden 
death  was  anciently  regarded,  in  all  common  cases,  as  a  proof  of 
the  divine  displeasure  ?  The  tradition  still  exists  among  the  Arabs, 
and  is  widely  spread  through  the  Eastern  world,  that  Enoch  or  Idris, 
on  account  of  his  great  piety,  was  taken  by  God  to  heaven,  and  re- 
ceived into  Paradise,  or  Albordj,  the  mountain  of  God.  Gen.  25: 
8,  Abraham  died,  and  was  gathered  to  his  people ;  certainly,  not  in 
the  literal  sense  of  being  buried  among  them,  for  he  died  at  a  great 
distance  from  the  land  of  his  fathers. — Ex.  3:  6,  /  am  the  God  of 
thy  father,  the  God  of  Abraham,  the  God  of  Isaac,  and  the  God  of 
Jacob ;  compared  with  our  Saviour's  commentary  on  these  words, 
Matt.  22:  32,  and  the  remarks  of  the  apostle,  Heb.  11: 13 — 16.  In 
the  time  of  Moses,  God  was  still  the  God  of  Abraham,  Isaac,  and 
Jacob,  and  Christ  declares  that  he  is  not  a  God  of  the  dead,  but  of 
the  living ;  consequently,  they  were  yet  in  existence  :  and  the  apos- 
tle to  the  Hebrews  avers,  that  these  patriarchs  sought  a  heavenly 
country. — 2  Kings  2:  11  ;  Elijah  was  taken  up  into  heaven  ;  in  the 
New  Testament  we  find  him  and  Moses  talking  with  Christ,  and 
we  are  made  acquainted  with  the  subject  of  their  conversation. 
(Matt.  17:  3.  Luke  9:  31). — Do  not  all  these  allusions,  illustrated  as 
they  are  by  the  corresponding  passages  of  the  New  Testament,  im- 
ply an  unshaken  belief  in  a  future  state  of  conscious  and  happy  ex- 
istence ? 

In  the  Psalms,  however,  we  have  evidence  still  more  direct,  of 
a  belief  in  a  future  state  of  rewards  and  punishments.  In  the  forty- 
ninth  Psalm  the  righteous  are  exhorted  not  to  be  disturbed  by  the 
pride  and  oppression  of  the  wicked,  for  it  was  impossible  that  their 
prosperity  should  continue  :  they  would  all  die  (vs.  7 — 12) ;  they 
would  be  driven  to  Sheol  like  sheep,  where  Death  would  devour 
them  (v.  14) ;  while  God  would  deliver  the  soul  of  the  righteous 
from  the  power  of  Sheol,  and  receive  him  to  himself  (v.  15 ;  com- 


350  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VII. 


pare  Ps.  73:  16 — 27). — In  the  sixteenth  Psalm,  the  Psalmist  ex- 
presses his  confidence  in  God,  because  he  had  always  made  him  his 
trust  (v.  8),  that  he  would  not  leave  his  soul  in  Sheol  (v.  10),  but 
would  show  him  the  path  of  life,  the  way  to  his  presence,  where  is 
fulness  of  joy,  and  to  his  right  hand  where  are  pleasures  forever- 
more  (v.  11 ;  compare  Ps.  23:  4,  6). — In  the  seventeenth  Psalm,  the 
Psalmist,  after  complaining  of  the  haughtiness  and  cruelty  of  his 
wicked  oppressors  (v.  9),  concludes  in  regard  to  himself,  that  he 
should  behold  the  face  of  God  in  righteousness,  and  be  satisfied 
when  he  awoke  with  his  likeness  (v.  11).  That  the  hope  of  the 
Psalmist  here  has  reference  to  the  life  to  come,  is  evident,  because 
it  is  expressed  as  an  antithesis  to  the  portion  of  the  wicked,  which 
they  have  in  this  life,  (v.  14  ;  compare  De  Wette  in  loc. ;  compare 
also  Dan.  12:  2,  3.  Ezek.  37:  1—14.  Is.  26:  19).  S. 

[C.  p.  65.]     Imagery  from  the  vices  of  men. 

The  sacred  writers,  with  a  boldness  peculiar  to  the  Oriental 
world,  have  drawn  some  of  their  most  striking  imagery  from  the  vi- 
res of  men ;  which  they  have  applied  with  great  freedom  not  only 
to  inferior  topics,  but  to  the  most  dignified  subjects,  and  even  to  the 
Deity  himself.  The  vices  most  frequently  alluded  to,  are  the  two 
most  destructive  and  disgusting  which  human  nature  ever  exhibits, 
namely,  drunkenness  and  lust.  Deut.  32:  42,  (compare  Is.  34:  5, 
6),  the  Almighty,  speaking  of  the  awful  vengeance  which  he  would 
take  on  his  enemies,  says  that  he  will  make  his  arrows  drunk  with 
their  blood.  Is.  49:  26,  God  declares  that  the  enemies  of  Israel, 
when  he  punishes  them,  shall  be  drunk  with  their  own  blood  as  with 
sweet  wine ;  63:  6,  he  will  make  them  drunk  in  his  fury ;  51:  21 — 23, 
the  same  image  is  drawn  out  to  great  particularity  of  detail,  and  is 
applied  to  his  own  people  when  suffering  for  their  sins  ;  and  24:  20, 
the  whole  earth  is  represented  as  reeling  like  a  drunkard  in  conse- 
quence of  the  wrath  of  God.  Ps.  78:  65,  God,  in  his  anger,  is  com- 
pared to  a  mighty  man  that  shouteth  by  reason  of  wine. 

The  imagery  derived  from  lust  is  principally  employed  to  depict 
the  wickedness  and  folly  of  forsaking  the  worship  of  the  true  God 
and  falling  into  idolatry.  In  the  common  language  of  the  Hebrews, 
this  is  called  adultery ;  but  in  poetry  the  picture  is  filled  up,  its 
most  disgusting  features  exposed  to  view ;  and  the  apostates  from 
true  religion,  in  order  to  excite  the  deepest  horror  for  their  crime, 
are  described  in  language  applicable  in  its  literal  sense  only  to  the 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VIII.  351 


most  impudent,  shameless,  and  insatiable  prostitutes.  (See  Is.  57: 
7 — 9.  Jer.  ii.  Ezek.  xvi.  xxiii.  and  the  Prophecy  of  Hosea  through- 
out). These  two  sources  of  imagery  are  combined  with  great  effect 
by  the  author  of  the  Apocalypse,  (17:  4 — 6). 

To  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the  manners  and  sentiments 
of  the  Oriental  world,  this  freedom  of  the  sacred  writers,  instead  of 
requiring  apology,  will  appear  as  one  of  the  highest  perfections  of 
their  art.  These  representations,  so  far  from  exciting  any  feelings 
of  lasciviousness  or  ideas  of  indelicacy  in  the  minds  of  those  to 
whom  they  were  originally  addressed,  only  served  to  raise  their  ab- 
horrence and  detestation  of  the  crime  ;  in  the  same  manner  as  we 
are  now  moved  to  detest  the  cool,  malignant  cunning  of  Tago  by  a 
perusal  of  Othello,  or  to  abhor  the  hellish  cruelty  of  the  English 
government  under  Charles  II.  by  reading  Old  Mortality.  The  ex- 
clusion of  females  from  the  society  of  men  in  the  East  has  given  oc- 
casion to  great  freedom  of  language  in  regard  to  these  subjects ;  and 
at  the  present  day,  an  Arab  who  would  scorn  to  be  guilty  of  an  im- 
modest action,  would  not  hesitate,  if  occasion  called  for  it,  to  de- 
scribe such  an  action  in  the  most  direct  and  appropriate  terms  :  and 
the  same  is  true  of  the  Oriental  writers.  (Michaelis,  Note  in  loc. ; 
De  Arvieux,  Tom.  III.  c.  11).  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VIII. 

[A.  p.  69.]     Imagery  from  the  priesthood. 

Among  the  Hebrews  there  was  a  dignity  and  grandeur  attached 
to  the  sacerdotal  character,  of  which  we  can  form  but  a  faint  con- 
ception. Jehovah,  the  invisible  God,  the  Creator  of  the  universe, 
condescended  to  be  elected  king  of  the  Hebrews,  (Ex.  15:  18.  Num. 
23:  21.  Deut.  33:  5.  Judg.  8:  23.  1  Sam.  8:  7.  10: 18,  19.  12:  12)  ; 
for  he  had  chosen  them  to  be  his  own  people,  (Num.  11:  29.  Deut. 
32:  9).  A  throne  was  prepared  for  him  between  the  cherubim  over 
the  ark  of  the  covenant,  where  he  sat  and  held  audience  with  his 
ministers,  (Ex.  25:  8,  22.  Num.  7:  89.  Compare  Ps.  18:  11.  80:  2. 
99:  1.  Isa.  37:  16.  1  Sam.  4:  4.  2  Sam.  6:  2).  The  exalted  privi- 
lege of  having  such  a  ruler  and  of  being  regarded  with  such  favour, 
elevated  the  Hebrews  far  above  all  the  other  nations  of  the  earth, 
and  we  find  them  dwelling  upon  this  idea  in  their  sacred  songs  with 
peculiar  satisfaction,  (Ps.  xcvii.  Ixxxii.  cxlvii).  Now,  the  priests 


352  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VIII. 

were  not  only  the  ministers  of  religion,  as  among  other  nations,  but 
they  were  the  courtiers,  the  messengers,  the  household  officers  of 
King  Jehovah  j  and  their  robes  of  office  corresponded  in  richness 
and  magnificence  with  their  exalted  rank  :  so  that  in  the  sacerdotal 
character  was  united  all  that  is  awful  in  religion,  venerable  in  au- 
thority, dignified  in  station,  and  splendid  in  exterior  magnificence. 
With  the  Hebrews,  therefore,  no  imagery  could  be  conceived  more 
sublime  and  magnificent  than  that  which  was  derived  from  the  sa- 
cerdotal character  and  habit,  (compare  Ecclus.  50:  1 — 16).  The 
highest  happiness  and  prosperity  of  the  nation  is  described  in  lan- 
guage derived  from  this  source,  (Isa.  61:  10,  11) ;  the  regal  dignity 
is  still  more  elevated  by  being  connected  with  the  priesthood,  (Ps. 
110:  4) ;  and  the  angels  themselves  are  clothed  like  priests,  (Ezek. 
9:  3.  Dan.  10:  5).  In  the  New  Testament  the  dignity  of  the  Mes- 
siah is  most  elevated  by  his  priestly  office,  (Heb.  vii.  viii.) ;  and  the 
exalted  happiness  and  glory  of  the  saints  in  heaven  can  in  no  way 
be  so  forcibly  expressed  as  by  calling  them  kings  and  PRIESTS  to 
God,  (Rev.  1:6.  5:  10.  20:  6).  As  an  example  of  the  application 
of  imagery  of  this  sort,  see  Psalm  cxxxiii. ;  of  which  Lowth  has  giv- 
en an  elegant  paraphrase  in  Lect.  XXV.  (Compare  Herder,  Geist, 
Th.  II.  SS.  122—133).  S. 

[B.  p.  70.]     PSALM  cxxxix.  15.     Compare  JOB  x.  11. 

I  know  not  why  our  author  should  say  that  the  art  of  designing  in 
needle-work  was  wholly  dedicated  to  the  use  of  the  sanctuary.  None  of 
the  passages  to  which  he  has  referred  necessarily  convey  this  idea, 
and  the  quotation  from  Ezekiel  seems  rather  to  intimate  the  contrary. 
Besides,  the  word  DJP1!,  which  our  author  has  translated  by  acupin- 
gere,  appears  to  signify  the  making  of  variegated  or  party-coloured 
work  of  any  kind  ;  and  not  to  be  confined  to  needle-work,  if,  in- 
deed, it  is  ever  employed  in  that  sense.  S. 

[C.  p.  72.]     PSALM  civ.  2—5. 

Our  author,  in  his  interpretation  of  this  Psalm,  has  suffered  his 
favourite  idea  to  carry  him  too  far  ;  for  many  of  the  images  which 
he  supposes  to  be  borrowed  from  the  sacred  tabernacle,  appear  to 
have  been  derived  from  other  sources. 

V.  1.  The  word  ttab  is  certainly  not  appropriated  to  the  dressing 
of  priests,  but  is  in  the  most  common  use  to  express  the  idea  of 
clothing  or  covering.  (See  Esth.  6:  8,  9.  Job  7:  5.  Ps.  65:  14). 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VIII.  353 

V.  2.  The  reference  to  the  light  in  the  Holy  of  Holies  is  rather 
far-fetched  ;  not  to  mention  that  we  have  no  evidence  of  the  exis- 
tence of  the  Shechina  excepting  while  the  children  of  Israel  were  on 
their  journeyings(Lev.!6:  2,)  and  at  the  dedication  of  Solomon's  tem- 
ple (1  K.  8:  10, 11),  besides  the  testimony  of  Rabbins,  those  prover- 
bial story-tellers,  who  themselves  ^confess  that  it  had  disappeared 
long  before  their  time,  and  had  never  been  seen  in  the  second  tem- 
ple.— The  word  n^V  may  be  applied  to  the  curtains  of  any  other 
tent  as  well  as  to  those  of  the  tabernacle  ;  and  if  there  is  any  jus- 
tice in  the  remark  on  the  third  verse,  any  raftered  building  may  be 
compared  to  the  air  as  well  as  the  tabernacle.  Similar  objections 
may  be  made  to  the  interpretation  of  the  remainder  of  the  third,  and 
of  the  fourth  verse ;  and  when  in  the  fifth,  the  firmness  and  durabil- 
ity of  the  earth  is  supposed  to  be  compared  to  a  movable  tent,  which 
must  already  have  needed  many  repairs,  the  image,  to  say  the  least, 
is  rather  inept  and  frigid.  (Compare  Michaelis  in  loe.) 

I  much  prefer  the  interpretation  of  Rosenmueller  and  De  Wette. 
God  is  described  in  this  Psalm  as  the  Creator  and  Ruler  of  the  uni- 
verse, the  imagery  is  borrowed  from  the  splendour  and  magnificence 
of  Oriental  monarchs,  and  the  writer  has  constantly  in  view  the  ac- 
count of  the  creation  in  Gen.  i. 

God  is  introduced  in  the  first  and  second  verses  as  clothed  with 
light,  like  an  Oriental  king  in  his  royal  robes,  glittering  with  gold 
and  sparkling  with  gems,  (compare  the  account  of  Sir  John  Mal- 
colm's introduction  to  the  Persian  king,  in  Sketches  of  Persia)  ;  as 
other  monarchs  had  their  tents,  he  stretches  out  the  heavens  them- 
selves for  his  royal  pavilion ;  as  earthly  kings  had  their  private  apart- 
ments in  the  upper  part  of  their  palaces,  (see  Jahn,  Bibl.  Arch. 
Th.  I.  S.  214,  compare  Jer.  22:  13,  14.  1  Chr.  28:  11.  2  Chr.  3:  9), 
so  God  laid  the  beams  of  his  chambers  in  the  waters  above  the  firma- 
ment, (compare  Gen.  1:7);  as  kings  had  their  lofty  chariots  and 
fleet  horses,  so  the  clouds  are  God's  chariot,  and  they  are  carried  by 
the  wings  of  the  wind,  (expressive  of  their  swiftness) ;  as  other  kings 
had  their  messengers  and  servants,  so  the  winds  and  the  lightnings 
are  the  messengers  and  servants  of  God  ;  of  him  who  founded  the 
earth  and  fixed  it  immovably  on  its  basis. 

I  trust  the  deader  will  be  amused,  if  not  edified,  by  the  con- 
cluding remarks  of  Michaelis  on  these  verses,  which  I  will  give  in 
his  own  words : 

"  Mihi  quidem,  etsi  nihil  tabernaculi  Levitici  animo  oberret,  hae 


354  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VIII. 

tamen  sententiae  et  imagines  perpulcrae  videntur  :  *  luce  tanquam 
pallio  amictus  eras,  cum  primum  ex  aeterna  tua  solitudine  prodires, 
teque  creatis  mentibus  praeberes  spectandum.  Caelum  tibi  pro  ten- 
torio  est :  caelum  pro  secreto  a  mortalibus  caenaculo,  aqua  et  gran- 
dine  contignato.  Nubium  tonante  curru  veheris,  portato  ventorum 
alis.  Turbines  tibi  pro  nuntiis,  fulmina  pro  ministris  adstant.'  Quae 
si  possem  carmine  ita  exprimere,  ut  Lowtho  datum  esse  solet,  Low- 
tho  etiam  iudici  probarem.  Sed  hoc  Dea  negat,  Latinique  carminis 
per  X  annos  neglectus."  S. 

[D.  p.  72.]     Imagery  from  popular  belief. 

There  seem  to  me  to  be  a  few  references,  at  least,  of  this  sort  in 
the  sacred  writings.  For  example,  in  Ps.  58:  5,  6,  the  comparison 
is  derived  from  the  vulgar  opinion  still  prevalent  in  the  East,  that 
jugglers  have  the  power  of  charming  serpents  and  rendering  them 
harmless ;  and  when  the  charm  fails  and  the  serpent  retains  his 
venom,  it  is  supposed  that  he  is  deaf,  or  that  he  had  purposely  closed 
his  ears  to  the  incantations.  (See  Bochart,  Hieroz.  P.  II.  L.  III. 
c.  6 ;  Niebuhr,  Travels,  Vol.  I.  p.  189).  In  Ps.  121:  6,  there  appears 
to  be  an  allusion  to  the  popular  notion  that  the  pains  occasioned  by 
sleeping  in  the  open  air  in  the  night,  are  produced  by  the  influence 
of  the  moon.  This  opinion  prevails  in  the  East  to  this  day.  (See 
Anderson's  Travels  in  the  East,  p.  8).  The  Greeks  and  Romans 
supposed  that  the  dew,  so  noxious  to  such  as  are  exposed  to  it  in  the 
night,  was  produced  by  the  moon.  (See  Heyne  in  Virg.  Georg.  III. 
337).  S. 

[E.  p.  72.]     Inadequacy  of  translations. 

It  may  be  asserted  of  translations  in  general,  and  I  am  sure  I 
have  experienced  the  truth  of  the  observation  in  this  very  attempt, 
that  many  of  the  minuter  beauties  of  style  are  necessarily  lost :  a 
translator  is  scarcely  allowed  to  intrude  upon  his  author  any  figures 
or  images  of  his  own,  and  many  which  appear  in  the  original,  must 
be  omitted  of  course.  Metaphors,  synecdoches,  and  metonymies, 
are  frequently  untractable  :  the  corresponding  words  would  probably 
in  a  figurative  sense  appear  harsh  or  obscure.  The  observation,  how- 
ever, applies  with  less  justice  to  our  common  version  of  the  Bible 
than  to  any  translation  whatever.  It  was  made  in  a  very  early  stage 
of  our  literature,  and  when  the  language  was  by  no  means  formed  : 
in  such  a  state  of  the  language,  the  figurative  diction  of  the  Hebrews 
might  be  literally  rendered  without  violence  to  the  national  taste  ; 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VIII.  355 

and  the  frequent  recurrence  of  the  same  images  and  expressions 
serves  to  familiarize  them  to  us.  Time  and  habit  have  now  given  it 
force  and  authority,-  and  I  believe  there  never  was  an  instance  of 
any  translation,  so  very  literal  and  exact,  being  read  with  such  uni- 
versal satisfaction  and  pleasure.  GREGORY. 

The  student  cannot  be  too  frequently  reminded,  that  it  is  vain  for 
him  to  think  of  relishing  the  beauties  of  Hebrew  literature  without  a 
familiar  acquaintance  with  the  Hebrew  language.  Many  who  speak 
of  the  beauties  of  the  Bible,  have  no  adequate  conceptions  of  that 
which  they  profess  to  admire  ;  and  those  who  ridicule  what  they  are 
pleased  to  term  its  faults,  betray  an  ignorance  that  is  pitiful  in- 
deed. It  is  true  that  the  Bible,  even  in  its  English  dress,  is  full 
of  the  most  striking  beauties ;  and  it  shows  the  amazing  power  of 
the  sacred  writers,  that  so  much  of  excellence  should  still  be  percep- 
tible after  the  lapse  of  ages  and  through  the  rubbish  of  translation. 
To  those  who  have  become  acquainted  with  the  literary  merits  of 
the  Bible  only  through  the  medium  of  translations,  I  would  earnestly 
recommend  the  attentive  perusal  of  the  following  colloquy,  from  the 
pen  of  Sir  William  Jones.  S. 

ARABS 

SIVE 
DE  POESI  ANGLORUM  DIALOGUS. 

Ut  pateret,  quam  inepte  de  gentium  exterarum  poesi  judicent  ii, 
qui  fidas  tantum  versiones  consulant,  colloquium,  quod  sequitur, 
olim  contexui.  Finxi  enim  Arabem  quendam,  qui  sermonem  Lati- 
num  Constantinopoli  didicerat,  cum  Britanno  quodam  mercatore, 
homine  literato,  familiariter  vixisse,  et  cum  eo  de  variis  Europe 
Asiaeque  artibus  solitum  esse  colloqui.  Cum  igitur  die  quodam  ad 
portum  una  descenderent,  et  Britannus  suae  gentis  poetas  in  coelum 
laudibus  efferret,  risum  Arabs  vix  potuit  compescere,  et,  Mirum  est, 
inquit,  quod  narras,  ac  portenti  simile :  cum  credidero  urbem  hanc 
amoenissimam  a  maris  hujus  piscibus  extructam  fuisse,  turn  demum 
poetas,  ut  tu  ais,  venustos  in  Anglia  credam  floruisse.  Hem  !  in 
pastu  pecudum  regnent  Angli,  agros  optime  colant,  lanam  egregie 
tingant ;  sed  eos  a  poesi  alienissimos  esse  persuasum  habeo.  Ser- 
monem Latinum,  tuo  hortatu,  teque  usus  adjutore,  didici;  spem 
enim  dedisti  poetas  complures  elegantissimos  legendi,  sed  nihil  ad- 
huc  vidi,  prseter  unum  atque  alterum  Horatii  carmen,  Ovidianas 
quasdam  elegias,  et  Virgilii  nobilissimum  poema,  quod,  meo  judicio, 


356  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  VIII. 


poesis  dici  mereatur.  Visn'  tu  credam,  in  illo,  quo  tu  natus  es,  ter- 
rarum  angulo,  poetas  meliores  quam  in  urbe  Roma  ortos  fuisse  * 
Turn  J3ritannus,  Ipse,  inquit,  judicabis ;  recitabo  enim  versiculos 
quosdam  ex  elegarttioribus  Anglorum  poetis  libatos,  quos,  ut  pulchre 
intelligas,  Latine  reddam.  Per  mini  gratum  feceris,  inquit  Arabs  ; 
sed  cave  quidquam  iis  ornamenti  adjungas :  verbum  verbo  redde. 
Turn  mercator  ;  Incipiam  igitur  a  poetis  heroicis  :  Sane,  si  placet, 
inquit  alter ;  sed  ullumne  habes  poetam,  quem  cum  Ferdusio  corn- 
pares  ?  Unum,  inquit,  atque  alterum  ;  sed  palma  Miltono  facile  de- 
ferenda  est ;  cujus  poema  epicum,  quod  inscribitur  Paradisus  Am- 
issus,  ab  omnibus  merito  celebratur  ;  istius  poematis  recitabo  exor- 
dium : 

"  De  hominis  priraa  inobedientia,  et  fructu 

"  Illius  vetitae  arboris,  cujus  mortalis  gustus 

"  Attulit  mortem  in  mundum,  omnesque  nostras  miserias, 

"  Cum  amissione  Edeni,  donee  unus  major  vir 

"  Redimat  nos,  et  recuperet  amoenam  sedem, 

"  Cane,  coelestis  musa."l 

Turn  Arabs  irridens,  Parce,  precor,  inquit,  nunquam  enim  ver- 
sus audivi  magis  insipidos.  Versus  autem  ?  imo,  ne  sermo  quidem 
merus  mihi  videtur.  Perge  porro  ad  Lyricos.  Ecquem  proferre 
potes  cum  Hafezo,  meis  tuisque  deliciis,  comparandum  1  Multos, 
respondet  ille ;  Surriumy  Couleium,  Spencerum,  alios ;  et  in  primis 
ilium,  quem  paullo  ante  citavi,  Miltonum  :  is  duo  scripsit  poemata, 
omni  numero  absoluta,  quorum  unum  L&tum  inscripsit,  alterum 
Tristan.  Quam  dulcis  haec  est,  in  primo  carmine,  matutinae  delec- 
tationis  descriptio ! 

"  Audire  alaudam  incipere  volatum  suum, 

"  Et  canentem  tremefacere  stupidam  noctem, 

"  A  specula  sua  in  sethere, 

"  Donee  maculatum  diluculum  oriatur ; 

"  Et  turn  venire,  invita  tristitia, 

"  Et  ad  meam  fenestram  dicere,  Salve  ! 

"  Per  cynosbaton,  aut  vitem, 

"  Aut  plexam  rosam  caninam  ; 

"  Dum  gallus  vivaci  strepitu 

"  Spargit  postremam  aciem  caliginis  tenuis, 

"  Et  ad  fcenile,  aut  horrei  portam, 

"  Magnanime  vacillat,dominas  praecedens."2 

Cum  Arabs  adhuc  impensius  rideret,  et  prope  se  in  cachinnuru 
I  Paradise  Lost,  B.  I.  vs.  1— &.  2  L' Allegro,  vs.  41—52. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX.  357 

effunderet,  Age  vero,  inquit  vir  Britannus,  ianibos  quosdam  citabo 
Popii  nostri,  poetarum  Anglorum,  si  artem  ac  suavitatem  species, 
facile  summus,  si  ingenium  et  copiam,  paucis  secundus  ;  placebunt 
tibi  hi  versiculi,  certo  scio  : 

"  Treraat  Sporus — Quid  ?  res  ilia  serica, 

"  Sporus,  merum  illud  coagulum  lactis  asinini ! 

"  Vituperium  aut  judicium,  eheu  !  potest  Sporus  sentire  ? 

"  Quis  disrumpit  papilionem  in  equuleo  ? 

"  Attamen,  liceat  mihi  percutere  cimicera  hunc,auratas  habentem  pennas, 

"  Hunc  pictum  filium  luti,  qui  fcetet  et  pungit."3 

— Ohe,  inquit  Arabs,  desine,  si  me  amas  :  haeccine  poesis  dici  po- 
test 1  Pra3terea  ad  portum  venimus,  ubi  frequens  erit  hodie  merca- 
tus,  Haec  cum  dixisset,  videretque  graviter  ferentem  et  stomachan- 
tem  Britannum,  pollicitus  est,  se  ad  linguam  Anglicam  condiscen- 
dam  aliquot  menses  impensurum,  ut  poetas,  quos  ille  laudaret,  ser- 
mone  proprio  loquentes  posset  perlegere. 


NOTES   ON   LECTURE   IX. 

[A.  p.  75.]     ISAIAH  LI.  15,16. 

fc^n  stt'i. 

S,  "  tranquillizing  or  instantaneously  stilling :"  it  is  common- 
ly rendered  clearing,  dividing,  not  only  in  this,  but  in  the  parallel 
places,  JER.  xxxi.  35  ;  JOB  xxvi.  12.  I  am,  however,  of  opinion, 
that  the  meaning  of  the  word  has  been  totally  mistaken.  It  denotes 
strictly  something  instantaneous  ;  a  cessation  of  motion,  or  a  sudden 
quieting ;  as  when  a  bird  suddenly  lights  upon  a  tree.  See  ISA. 
xxxiv.  14.  The  SEPTUAGINT  very  properly  renders  it,  in  the  above- 
quoted  passage  in  JOB,  xaitnavos.  Consult  the  CONCORDANCE. 

LOWTH. 

Maris  Erythraei  traiectum  a  vate  respici,  est  et  nonnullorum  ex 
Hebraeis  interpretum  coniectura,  ut  larchii,  nisi  quod  is  verb'um  y^ 
gallico  froncer,  contrahi,  explicat.  Alii,  ut  Kimchi,  Jindendi  notio- 
nem  illi  tribuunt,  utrique  ad  lob.  vii.  5.  provocantes,  quo  loco  verba 
$y^  *H12  alii  cutis  mea  contracta,  corrugata  est,  a.\ii,jissa  est,  inter- 
pretantur.  Sed  de  fisso  mari  Erythraeo,  in  gratiam  Israelitarum, 
vatem  cogitasse,  nullum  nostro  loco  est  vestigium.  I  mo  vero  lere- 

3  Epistle  to  Dr.  Arbuthnot. 


35S  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX. 


mias,  eadem,  quae  hie  leguntur,  verba  repetens  xxxi.  35,  de  poten- 
tiae  divinae  documentis  in  universum  loquitur.  Quod  autem  Lowthi 
attinet  verborum  E*n  y^  interpretationem,  tranquiUansmare,  et 
eius  iam  ab  Abenesra  facta  reperitur  mentio.  Verba  eius  sunt  : 
5>tntt  -piDb  TbS  lantt  ^intf  rp333  D^EIK  UP  Suntqui  y^  interpre- 
tentur  quiescere  faciens  postquam  fretnuerunt  undae  eius,  notione  as- 
sumta  nominis  Sia-iB,  quies,  lerem.  vi.  16.  Nobistamen  concinnior 
videtur  vulgo  recepta  interpretatio  :  Ego,  lova  tuus,  qui  commoveo, 
sive,  ut  Hieronymus,  conturbo,  mare,  ut  fluctus  eius  Jremant.  Ita 
iam  LXX.  TaQUGGMv  xr^v  ftakuanav.  Chaldaeus:  Na^S  ppTaT  ,  gn« 
increpo  mare.  Verbo  5)73  alias  is  interpres  uti  solet  pro  Hebraeo 
•TO,  increpat  ;  videtur  igitur  nostrum  yy-\  per  literarum  inversio- 
nem  accepisse  pro  -\y\  collato  loco  supra  L.  2.  t3n  ^-jna*  Vn3>33 
increpafione  mea  exsicco  s.  exsiccavi  mare,  scil.  rubrum. 

ROSENMUELLER. 

"  tPtt'iJ  yfcab  .  In  the  present  text  it  is  yuft,  to  plant  the  heav- 
ens :  the  phrase  is  certainly  very  obscure  ;  and  in  all  probability  is  a 
mistake  for  mi25b-  This  latter  is  the  word  used  in  v.  13,  just  be- 
fore, in  the  very  same  sentence  ;  and  this  phrase  occurs  frequently 
in  Isaiah,  e.  g.  xl.  22.  xlii.  5.  xliv.  24.  xlv.  12.  The  former  in  no 
other  place.  It  is  also  very  remarkable,  that  in  the  Samaritan  text, 
Numb.  xxiv.  1,  these  two  words  are  twice  changed,  by  mistake,  one 
for  the  other,  in  the  same  verse."  LOWTH. 

The  use  of  the  word  2BD  in  reference  to  the  heavens,  which  has 

-T 

occasioned  so  much  difficulty  to  commentators,  is  very  easily  ex- 
plained. It  denotes  the  fastening  of  the  pins  of  a  tent,  and  is  thence 
used  to  signify  the  act  of  pitching  a  tent  (Dan.  11:  45),  with  which 
the  heavens  are  often  compared.  Its  meaning,  therefore,  in  thia 
place,  is  the  same  as  that  of  JiDD  in  v.  13  ;  and  there  is  no  necessity 
for  changing  the  text  to  rna:b.  GESENIUS. 

[B.  p.  76.]     PSALM  xi.  6. 


This  is  an  admirable  image,  and  is  taken  from  the  school  of  na- 
ture. The  wind  Zilgaphoth,  which  blows  from  the  East,  is  very  pes- 
tilential, and  therefore  almost  proverbial  among  the  Orientals.  In 
the  months  of  July  and  August,  when  it  happens  to  continue  for  the 
space  of  ten  minutes,  it  kills  whatever  is  exposed  to  it.  Many  won- 
derful stories  are  related  of  its  effects  by  the  Arabians,  and  their  po- 
ets feign  that  the  wicked,  in  their  place  of  eternal  torment,  are  to 
breath  this  pestiferous  wind  as  their  vital  air.  MICHAELIS. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX.  359 

Meaning  of  e^rtfe. 

B  "  live  coals,"  av&oaxae,  as  it  is  rendered  by  the  old  trans- 
lator, CHRYS.  in  loc.  Globes  of  fire,  or  meteors,  such  as  Pliny  calls 
Bolidas,  Nat.  Hist.  ii.  26,  or  simply  the  lightning  seems  to  be  un- 
derstood. Compare  PSAL.  xviii.  13,  14.  JOSEPHUS  on  the  de- 
struction of  Sodom,  "God  assailed  the  city  with  his  thunderbolts;" 
Antiq.  i.  11.  PHILO  on  the  same  :  "Lightning  fell  down  from  heav- 
en." De  Vit.  Mos.  i.  12.  This  is  certainly  more  agreeable  to  the 
context  than  snares.  The  root  is  h*iB,  which,  though  it  sometimes 
means  to  ensnare,  yet  more  frequently  means  to  breathe  forth,  or 
emit,  fire,  for  instance.  EZEK.  xxi.  31.  "  In  thejire  of  my  wrath  I 
will  blow  upon  thee."  The  Ammonites  are  spoken  of,  as  thrown  in- 
to the  furnace  of  the  divine  wrath  :  compare  xxii.  21,  where  al- 
most the  same  words  occur,  except  that  the  corresponding  (and  in 
in  this  case  synonymous)  verb  he:  is  made  use  of,  whence  hB33,  a 
bellows  :  JER.  vi.  29.  In  the  same  sense  the  verb  his  is  introduc- 
ed, PROV.  xxix.  8,  "  Scorners  will  inflame  a  city."  So  also  the  SEPT. 
SYMMACHUS,  the  Syriac  ;  and  rightly,  as  appears  from  the  antithet- 
ic member  of  the  sentence  :  "  but  wise  men  will  turn  away  wrath." 
From  this  explication  of  the  root  h^S,  the  word  hB,  a  coal  blown  up, 
is  rightly  derived  :  and  tTB,  (Exoo.  ix.  8.)  embers,  in  which  the  fire 
may  yet  be  excited  by  blowing.  LOWTH. 

The  literal  meaning  of  hD  is  a  net  or  snare,  (see  Job  18:  9 ; 
Eccl.  9:  12;  Prov.  7 :  23 ;  Ps~  119:  110) ;  and  in  this  place  the 
word  is  most  probably  applied  to  those  long  and  winding  flashes, 
which  we,  in  popular  language,  denominate  chain-lightning.  The 

5       /     / 

Arabs  call  lightning  of  this  sort     VAW^A*,  chains;  and  Homer  (II. 

xiii.  812)  gives  it  the  name  [4ctOTt£,  a  whip.  All  these  names  are 
evidently  derived  from  the  appearance  of  the  lightning,  to  which 
theyjare  applied.  S. 

[C.  p.  76.]     Imagery  from  the  overthrow  of  Sodom  and  Gomorrah. 

Eximie  apto  et  lectissimo  exemplo  usus  Noster.  Quod  enim 
supra  monuerat,  imagines  aliquas  apud  Orientales  certis  rebus  tan- 
quam  proprias  fieri,  quibus  deinde  audacius  utantur  poetae,  id  vero 
maxime  in  Sodomorum  excidio  usu  venit,  cui  gravissimas  terrarum 
calamitates  et  devastationes,  licet  non  per  omnia  similes,  soluta  etiam 
oratione  comparare  solent.  Exemplum  praebeat  Moses,  salis  etiam, 
et  sulphuris,  et  incendii  subterranei,  in  describenda  Palaestinae 


360  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX. 

vastitate  mentionem  faciens,  quae  omnia  translata  modo  a  Sodomis 
sunt,  neque  proprie  accipi  in  belli  calamitate  possunt.  Videbunt, 
inquit  Deuteron.  xxix.  22,  calamitatem  terrae,  salem,  et  sulphur, 
omnemque  terrain  exustam,  quae  non  conseminatur ,  nee  virescit,  nee 
propullulant  in  ilia  herbae,  similem  eversis  Sodomis  et  Gomorrhae. 
Nihil  hie  salis  mentione  mirabilius,  nee  intellectus  Moses  multis  in- 
terpretibus,  ut  ei  consulant,  fingentibus,  bitumen  salem  vocari. 
Hoc  vero  omne  ex  aspectu  vallium  mari  mortuo  circumiectarum  in- 
telligi  facile  potuisset.  His  enim,  Libani  nivibus  per  lordanem 
auctum  verno  tempore  innatat  mare  mortuum,  unum  omnium  salsissi- 
mum  :  casque,  recedens  paulo  post,  sale  convestit.  (Vide  Pocokii 
itinerum  commentaries,  Vol.  II.  P.  I.  p.  36.  Ezech.  xlvii.  11).  Quo 
maris  dono  licet  in  sua  commoda  utantur  accolae,  facit  tamen  copia, 
ut  non  magnus  illarum  vallium  fructus  habeatur  :  cumque  ilia  valle, 
exustis  olim  urbibus  vicina,  nihil  sterilius  in  omni  Palaestina  sit,  in- 
dicium sterilitatis  salem  habere  coeptum  est,  et  urbes  etiam  vastatas 
sale  conserere,  et  steriles  agros  salsuginosos  vocare  :  lerem.  xvii.  6. 
Ps.  cvii.  34.  lob.  xxxix.  6.  lud.  ix.  45.  Quod  enim  ad  haec  loca 
habent  interpretes,  salem  terrae  sterilitatem  inducere,  si  de  sale  com- 
muni,  ut  volunt,  accipiatur,  magnam  prodit  rerum  obviarum  ignora- 
tionem,  hire  castigatarn  a  doctissimo  Altmanno  §  XVII.  Exercita- 
tionis  de  Sale  terrae  (in  Meletem.  philologica — exegetieis  T.  I.  p.  47 
— 51),  quamquam  hac  parte  sine  dubio  errat,  quod  mari  mortuo  sa- 
lem veri  nominis,  contra  veterum  et  recentiorum  fidem  negat,  cuius 
tanta  illi  copia  est,  ut  gravitas  eius  aquae  communi  collata  sit  ut  5, 
ad  4. 

Hanc  Mosis  in  soluta  oratione  audaciam  qui  cogitaverit,  imagin- 
em  vastitatis  a  lesaia  informatam,  non  ad  vivum  resecabit.  Suf- 
ficiet  illi,  quae  nunc  est,  horrenda  Idumaeae  vastitas,  nee  quia  ar- 
dentes  rivos  fumumque  perpetuum  (qui  et  ipse  erumpere  idemtidem 
ex  mari  mortuo  solet),  in  ilia  non  videt,  statim  cum  ludaeis,  Chris- 
tianis  multis,  eoque,  quern  plerique  in  lesaia  sequuntur,  Vitringa, 
aliam  quaeret  in  Italia  Idumaeam.  Qui  quidem  error,  alios  plures 
trahens,  exemplo  esse  potest,  quam  infeliciter,  frigido  pectore  nimis- 
que  sani  ad  poemata  Hebraeorum  accedentes,  in  eorum  interpreta- 
tione  versentur,  audacissima  carmina  ita  lecturi,  ut  solutam,  et  me- 
diocrem,  et  exsanguem  orationem  :  atque  quid  non  iucunditatis 
solum  sed  et  utilitatis  habeat  de  poesi  Hebraeorum  suscepta  tracta- 
tio.  Confer  etiam  similem  vastatae  Idumaeae  descriptionem  apud 

leremiam,  lesaiae  in  toto  illo  capite  imitatorem,  XLIX.  18. 

MICHAELTS. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX.  361 

[D.  p.  78.]     PSALM  xvm.  8—16. 

For  an  illustration  of  the  nature  of  the  language  and  imagery  in 
this  Psalm,  see  the  remarks  on  Psalm  civ.  Note  C  on  Lect.  VIII. 
There  appears  to  be  little  need  of  supposing  the  materials  of  this 
sublime  description  to  be  derived  from  the  scene  which  was  exhibit- 
ed on  Sinai.  The  ordinary  convulsions  of  nature  would  afford  am- 
ple materials  to  such  an  imagination  as  that  of  the  writer  of  this 
Psalm.  S. 

[E.  p.  80.]     Imagery  from  sacred  history. 

Notissimum  huius  licentiae  exemplum  Elias,  a  Malachia  pro 
.severo  morum  castigatore  positus.  Null  us  tamem  hac  parte  Hebrai- 
cus  poeta  audaciam  aequat  Apocalypseos,  libri,  graecis  quidem  ver- 
bis  scripti,  sed  sententiis,  colore,  spiritu  denique,  Hebraico.  Huic 
alia  Aegyptus,  Sodoma,  Hierosolyma,  Babylon,  novus  denique  Gogus 
et  Magogus,  ad  Ezechielici  imaginem  effictus.  Tentari  simile  quid 
et  a  lesaia  volunt ;  nee  obstrepere  ausim,  si  de  capite  LXIII.  solo 
id  dicatur,  ubi  ignotus  novusque  hostis  a  propheta,  vivis  omnia  colori- 
bus  pingente,  noto  Edomi  nomine  insignitur.  Saepe  tamen  id  fieri 
non  existimo,  nee  cum  illis  facere  audeo,  qui  tanquam  aliquam  mys- 
ticam  geographiam  pepererunt.  Insolentius  etiam  quid  tentare  vi- 
detur  Apocalypsis,  nee  nominibus  solum,  sed  et  numeris  historiae 
antiquae  uti.  Vix  mihi  persuadeo,  chronologica  esse,  quae  de  tribus 
annis  et  dimidio,  de  XLII  mensibus,  de  1260  diebus  habet :  sed 
suspicor,  miserrima  tempora  describi,  illis  similia,  quae  per  totidem 
menses  vivente  Elia  fuerunt.  Chronologica,  quae  hie  multi  quae- 
runt,  ex  libro  etiam  omnium  obscurissimo  disciplinae  omnium  ob- 
scurissimae  lucem  se  daturos  professi,  multum  abesse  a  vaticiniorum 
ingenio  videntur.  Sunt  prophetiae  fere  eaedem  in  imaginibus  in- 
formandis  leges,  quae  poematis  :  valde  autem  frigebit  poeta,  si  nimis 
sanus  numeris  rem  accurate  prosequatur,  exponatque,  quo  die  pug- 
natum  sit,  quot  ceciderint  in  acie,  et  quae  alia  sunt  eiusdern  generis. 
Pictores,  poetae  et  prophetae  valde  cognati :  horum  visionibus  ex- 
plicandis  si  quis  leges  hermeneuticas  condere  velit,  multa  a  pictori- 
bus  et  poetis  discere  potest.  A  quibus  artibus  alienissimi  homines, 
et  omnino  barbari,  si  ad  vaticinia  explicanda  accedant,  non  mirum 
est,  omnia  eos  proprie  accipere,  ac  turn  demum  sibi  sapere  videri, 
quando  figmenta  et  monstra  procudunt  chiliastica.  Memini,  qui  id 
agens  gloriaretur,  a  se  primo  intellecta  prophetarum  et  loannis  vati- 
cinia, se  primum  eos  equuleo  detraxisse.  MICHAELIS, 
46 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX. 


[F.  p.  80].     Imagery  from  poetic  fable. 

Professor  Michaelis  makes  a  very  considerable  addition  to  this 
Lecture,  concerning  those  images  or  figures  which  are  taken  from 
poetic  fable.  He  asserts  that  such  fable  is  essential  to  all  poetry  : 
that  whoever  has  a  taste  for  poetry  connot  possibly  take  it  in  a  literal 
sense,  and  that  the  sole  purpose  of  it  is  ornament  and  pleasure. 

He  observes  that  there  are  many  particulars,  in  which  a  wonder- 
ful agreement  may  be  discovered  between  the  fables  of  the  Greeks 
and  Romans,  and  those  of  the  Hebrews.  He  is  of  opinion  that  this 
agreement  clearly  indicates  a  common  source,  which  he  supposes  to 
be  Egypt.  From  Egypt,  Homer  and  the  other  Greek  poets  borrow- 
ed the  principal  of  their  fables,  as  we  may  learn  from  Herodotus  and 
Heliodorus  :  nor  is  it  at  all  improbable,  that  the  Hebrews  should  do 
the  same,  who  were  for  two  successive  ages  the  subjects  and  schol- 
ars of  the  Egyptians.  The  most  ancient  Hebrew  poem,  Job,  abounds 
in  Egyptian  and  fabulous  imagery  :  as  may  be  seen  in  the  professor's 
dissertation  on  that  subject  before  the  academy  of  sciences. 

GREGORY. 

Recent  investigations  have  had  no  tendency  to  confirm  the  con- 
jectures of  Michaelis,  in  regard  to  the  poetic  fable  of  the  Hebrews  ; 
and  they  are,  for  the  most  part,  so  chimerical,  that  it  could  serve  no 
good  purpose  to  insert  them  here.  That  there  are,  however,  images 
in  the  sacred  poetry  which  may  justly  be  said  to  have  their  origin  in 
poetic  fable,  scarcely  admits  of  doubt ;  and  if  any  analogy  exists  be- 
tween them  and  the  stories  of  heathen  mythology,  I  apprehend  that 
it  is  to  be  found  in  the  descriptions  of  the  supernatural,  or  rather, 
symbolical  beings,  which  are  frequently  introduced  with  so  much 
effect  by  the  prophets.  Of  these  the  most  important  are  the  Cheru- 
bim, which  in  some  circumstances  forcibly  remind  us  of  the  Griffin 
of  the  Celts  ;  the  Typhonic  dragon  of  the  Greeks ;  the  Sphynx  of 
the  Egyptians ;  and  the  winged  angel  of  Oriental  mythology  (Sim- 
org-Anca,  Soham,  etc.),  which  resided  on  mount  Kaf,  and  spoke  all 
the  languages  and  was  acquainted  with  all  the  sciences  and  religions 
of  the  world.  He  waged  a  constant  war  with  the  giants  of  the  old 
world,  and  guarded  the  treasures  of  Paradise.  (Comp.  Sketches  of 
Persia). 

We  first  find  the  Cherubim  guarding  the  way  of  the  tree  of  life 
(Gen.  3:  24) ;  images  of  them  are  then  placed  in  the  sacred  taber- 
nacle on  the  ark  of  the  covenant,  with  their  faces  turned  towards  it, 
and  their  wings  overshadowing  the  mercy-seat,  or  the  throne  of  Je- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX.  3G3 

hovah,  (Ex.  25:  17—20.  36:  8,  35) ;  and  in  the  temple  of  Solomon 
there  are  images  of  the  same  sort,  though  more  magnificently  exe- 
cuted, (1  Kings  6:  23 — 29 ;  2  Chron.  3:  7, 10 — 13  ;  compare  Ezek. 
41:  18,  19).  Hence,  "  He  who  dwdleth  between  the  Cherubim," 
came  to  be  an  honorary  appellation  of  Jehovah,  (1  Sam.  4:  4 ;  2  Sam. 
6:  2  ;  Ps.  8:  2 ;  Isa.  37:  16).  In  the  Psalms  and  prophets  they  are 
introduced  as  the  supporters  of  Jehovah's  throne,  or  the  bearers  of 
his  chariot  when  he  rides  in  the  clouds,  (Ps.  18.  11  ;  Ezek.  1:  10 ; 
10:  14;  Rev.  4:  6).  Ezekiel  describes  four  Cherubim,  each  of 
them  having  four  faces,  namely,  of  a  man,  a  bullock,  a  lion,  and  an 
eagle,  (Ezek.  1:  10)  ;  and  St.  John,  who,  according  to  his  usual 
method,  adopts  the  imagery  of  Ezekiel  and  modifies  it  by  .his  own 
prolific  fancy,  gives  to  one  of  his  Cherubim  the  face  of  a  lion,  to  an- 
other the  face  of  a  bullock,  to  the  third  the  face  of  a  man,  and  to  the 
fourth  that  of  an  eagle,  (Rev.  4:  6).  The  reason  of  these  figures 
being  chosen  for  the  Cherubim  is  thus  explained  by  the  Jewish 
Rabbins  :  "  Dixit  R.  Abin  nomine  R.  Abhu  :  quatuor  sunt,  qui  prin- 
cipatum  in  hoc  mundo  tenent.  Inter  omnes  homo,  inter  aves  aquila, 
inter  pecora  bos,  inter  bestias  ho.  Quilibet  horum  regnum  habet  et 
magnificentiam  quandam ;  ponuntur  autem  sub  throno  majestatis 
divinae  S.  D.  Ez.  i.  10.  Hoc  vero  cur  factum  est?  ut  nullum  ex 
illis  se  efferat  in  mundo,  sed  sciant,  regnum  Dei  dominari  in  omnia." 
(Midrasch  Thehillim  CIII.  19.  Compare  Herder,  Geist,  Th.  I.  S. 
160  ff. ;  Rosenmueller,  Scholia  in  Ez.  I.  10 ;  Eichhorn,  Comment, 
in  Apoc.  IV.  6). 

That  these  Cherubim  are  intended  for  allegorical  figures  and 
not  for  real  existences,  seems  manifest  from  the  different  descrip- 
tions which  are  given  of  them  in  different  parts  of  the  sacred  writ- 
ings. (Compare  the  passages  already  crted).  In  condescension 
to  our  condition  as  creatures  of  sense,  God  presented  to  the  minds  of 
the  sacred  writers,  in  prophetic  vision,  such  images  as  are  best 
adapted  to  give  us  some  apprehension  of  the  indescribable  glories  of 
the  invisible  world,  and  of  the  inexpressible,  and,  to  human  minds, 
the  inconceivable  majesty  of  the  Godhead.  (Compare  the  description 
of  the  heavenly  city  in  Rev.  xxi.)  Few  considerate  men  will  venture 
to  assert,  that  the  visible  appearance  of  heaven  and  of  heavenly  be- 
ings to  a  disembodied  spirit,  will  be  exactly  conformed  to  the  de- 
scriptions of  them  which  are  given  in  the  Bible.  It  is  as  great  an 
errour  to  take  the  costume  for  the  sentiment  as  it  is  to  mistake  the 
dress  for  the  man. 


364  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  IX>. 


Similar  remarks  may  be  applied  to  the  Seraphim,  (Isa.  6*  2) ; 
but  as  they  arc  mentioned  but  once,  and  the  description  of  them  is 
then  not  very  minute,  we  have  not  the  means  of  forming  an  accurate 
judgement  respecting  them. 

Some  of  the  malicious  beings,  also,  introduced  by  the  prophets, 
seem  to  be  allegorical  or  fabulous.  Isa.  13:  21  and  34:  14  mention 
is  made  of  D^-Ortij,  Satyrs,  a  mischievous  set  of  fiends,  with  heads 
and  breasts  like  men,  and  the  lower  parts  like  goats,  who,  according 
to  the  universal  belief  of  the  Oriental  world  at  the  present  day,  infest 
the  woods  and  solitary  places,  and  amuse  themselves  by  dancing  and 
shrieking,  and  make  it  their  business  to  perplex  and  mislead  travel- 
lers, whom  they  finally  murder  that  they  may  devour  their  flesh. 
(See  Mines  of  the  East,  Vol.  III.  p.  144 ;  Bochart,  Hieroz.  T.  II. 
830.  III.  847).  "  Edessa  remained  a  wilderness  drunk  with  blood, 
(says  Abulfaragius)  and  full  of  the  mournful  cries  of  her  sons  and 
daughters;  and  the  Sirens  (UIQ±A^.CD,  ti^tfiZJ)  came  by  night  to 
devour  the  flesh  of  the  slain,"  (Abulfarag.  p.  333).  The  Zend- 
Avesta  asserts  that  these  demons  are  the  descendants  of  Djemak,  the 
sister  of  Djemjid,  by  a  Dew,  (devil).  (Zend-Avesta,  T.  III.  p.  99). 
They  are  the  same  as  the  Ghools  of  the  modern  Persians  and  Arabs, 
of  whose  malicious  disposition  and  mischievous  pranks  there  are 
some  very  lively  and  humorous  descriptions  in  Sir  John  Malcolm's 
Sketches  of  Persia.  Isa.  34:  14,  rnb^b  are  mentioned  ;  spectres  in 
the  form  of  women,  who  were  accustomed  to  wander  about  in  the 
night,  entice  men  to  fornication,  murder  children,  and  commit  other 
crimes.  (Buxtorf,  Lex.  Talmud,  p.  1140;  Eisenmenger,  Juden- 
thum,  Th.  II.  S.  413).  In  an  old  Syriac  treatise  against  the  ascet- 
ic monks,  it  is  said,  that  the  female  night-ghosts  (|AA!^,  rpb^b,} 
come  to  them  (the  monks),  and  lay  themselves  beside  them,  and  con- 
ceive from  them,  and  become  pregnant ;  and  thence  are  born  devils 
and  dancing  spectres,  who  fall  upon  the  daughters  of  men.  (See  Ge- 
senius's  Commentary  on  the  passages  cited).  These  last  may  per- 
haps with  equal  propriety  be  classed  with  popular  superstitions ;  (see 
Lect.  VIII.  Note  D).  S. 


ROTES  ON  LECTURE  X.  365 

NOTES  ON  LECTURE  X. 

[A.  p.  82.]     PSALM  ex.  3. 

Some  of  the  more  modern  translators  seem  at  length  agreed,  that 
this  is  the  proper  sense  of  the  passage ;  none  of  them,  however,  as 
far  as  I  have  been  able  to  judge,  has  hitherto  actually  explained  it 
at  length.  I  shall,  therefore,  take  advantage  of  this  opportunity  to 
give  my  sentiments  upon  it,  lest  doubts  should  afterwards  arise  con- 
cerning the  meaning  of  a  very  important,  and  (as  I  think)  a  very 
clear  passage  of  holy  writ.  The  principal  difficulty  proceeds  from 
the  word  fifnJD ,  and  from  the  ambiguity  of  the  particle  ft  and  the 
ellipsis  of  the  word  ^tO  :  which,  I  think,  will  be  readily  cleared  up, 
if  we  attend  to  the  following  examples,  the  nature  and  meaning  of 
which  is  evidently  similar.  PSALM  iv.  8. 

"  Thou  hast  excited  joy  in  my  heart, 

"  Beyond  the  time  in  which  their  corn  and  wine  increased  :" 

That  is,  "  beyond  (or  superior  to)  the  joy  of  that  time." 

u  Although  their  shrines  are  before  Jerusalem  and  Samaria :"  Is,  x.  10. 
That  is,  "  excel  the  shrines  of  Jerusalem  and  Samaria."  JOB  xxxv. 
2.  "  My  justice  before  God  :"  that  is,  "  My  justice  is  greater  than 
the  justice  of  God  :"  (compare  xxxii.  2,  and  xl.  8.)  In  the  same 
manner  Dhnjfl,  "before  the  womb,"  is  the  same  as  Qh"j  bt2E,  "be- 
fore the  dew  of  the  womb."  Nor  are  there  wanting  in  the  Greeks 
examples  of  similar  ellipses  :  Mrjd*  OhvpTiias  ccywva  yfQxtQOv  av- 
SaGoutv  "  Neither  can  we  celebrate  a  contest  more  noble  than  is 
that  of  Olympia  :"  nydt  TOV  OkvfATiictxov  aycovog  tTtgov  fitfaiovct. 
FIND.  Olvpn.  A.  v.  11.  et  Schol.  Edit.  Oxon. 

&?  ri  kcwaiva  TCOV  (frpvyaw  ptiwv  nohg  ; 

"  As  if  the  city  of  the  Lacedemonians  were  smaller  than  that  of  the 
Phrygians."     EURIP.  Andron.  v.  193. 

The  metaphor  taken  from  the  dew  is  expressive  of  fecundity, 
plenty,  multitude  :  (compare  2  SAM.  xvii.  11,  12  ;  MIC.  v.  7.)  "A 
numerous  offspring  shall  be  born  unto  thee ;  and,  a  numerous  offspring 
it  shall  produce."  Sjnjb^,  "  thy  youth,"  or  "  the  youth  that  are  pro- 
duced from  thee  ;"  the  abstract  for  the  concrete,  as  ni^to,  "  white- 
ness," or  being  grey-headed,  for  a  grey-headed  man,  LEV.  xix.  32. 
"p'iJ,  "  captivity,"  for  a  captive,  ISA.  xlix.  24,  and  so  the  Chaldee 
interpreter  takes  the  following,  *jrn^in  fSMTnb  "psm,  "  Thy  off- 
spring shall  sit  (or  remain)  in  confidence."  LOWTH. 


366  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  X. 


[B.  p.  83.]     ECCLESIASTES  xn.  2—6. 

Interpretibus  plerisque  aliis  felicior  in  allegorica  senectutis 
descriptione  versatus  est  EVSEB.  TIIAVG.  EBERT  in  Dissert.  Imago 
Senis  Salomond  ex  Cap.  XIL  Eccles.  ad  analogiam  linguae  poeti- 
cae  expressa,  Lips.  1770.  4.  Q,uae  scriptio  quum  hodie  in  pauco- 
rum  manibus  fuerit,  non  ingratam  lectori  bus  rem  nos  facturos  spera- 
mus,  si  interpretationis  Ebertianae  summam,  qualem  ipse  in  para- 
phrasi  exhibuit,  subiiciaraus.  Est  vero  talis  :  "  Esto  auctoris  tui  ac 
conditoris  memor,  o !  quicunque  es,  cui  laetior  arridet  fortuna,  an- 
tequam  dies  funesti  annique  superveniant,  quos  ubi  adesse  senseris, 
protinus  exclamabis  :  ingrati  sunt,  et  displicent  mihi  valde !  Ante- 
quain,  pulsa  priorum  annorum  serenitate  ac  luce,  tristior  aetas  te 
excipiat,  eorum  vitae  similis,  quibus,  involventibus  diem  nimbis, 
squalida  nox  coelum  abstulit,  solemque,  et  lunam,  et  reliquorum  si- 
derum  ignes  eripuit,  recurrentibus  aliis  post  alias  imbriferis  nubibus. 
Antequam  tempus  instet,  quo  tremant,  ruinosae  veluti  domus  custo- 
des,  brachia  et  manus,  et  incurveritur,  quibus  sustinebatur,  robusta 
pedum  fulcra,  et,  peracto  comminuendi  labore,  ferias  veluti  agant 
molentes  (i.  e.  dentes),  et  obscurentur  oculi,  quorum  per  orbes,  tan- 
quam  per  fenestras,  mens  ipsa  transspiciebat,  et  claudantur  fores 
(i.  e.  labia)  ad  plateam  (i.e.  extrinsecus),  propter  vocem  molentis 
ancillae  debiliorem  (i.  e.  linguae  obsequium  domino,  dentibus  amissis, 
denegantis),  et,  despectis  suavioribus  sonis,  surgas  ad  cantum  volu- 
crum  ;  tempus,  inquam,  quo  vel  remotissima  quaeque  timebis,  viam- 
que  perhorresces,  quamvis  excusserit  flores  amygdala,  et  circumvoli- 
tet  locusta  (i.  e.  quamvis  formossissima  anni  tempestas  aut  incipiat 
aut  adsit) ;  et  evanescat  omnis  cupiditas  et  voluptas,  cum  iam  homi- 
ni  adeunda  sit  mansura  in  his  terris  domus,  ad  quam  conlacruman- 
tium  sequente  turba,  efferatur.  Memor  igitur  esto  patris  ac  con- 
servatoris  tui,  dum  res,  et  aetas,  et  ipsius  voluntas  patiuntur,  ante- 
quam  vivo  sanguinis  tui  fonti  idem  eveniat  quod  puteo,  super  quo, 
remoto  fune  argenteo,  et  retro  currente  aurea  trochlea,  frangitur, 
quae  ab  ipsa  pendebat,  situla,  cessante  ita  totius  machinae  usu  ac 
motu,  cuius  ope  aqua  in  subiectam  cisternam  vehebatur."  In  versu 
5.  tamen  verba  "Jj5/£in  y^lP1]  reddenda  puto  :  et  antequam  florcat 
amygdalus,  i.  e.  antequam  cani,  instar  florum  in  capite  alborum, 
progerminent  copiose  :  flores  amygdali  quum  aliquamdiu  in  arbore 
extiterunt,  et  iam  in  eo  sunt,  ut  defluant,  albescere  solent.  Quae 
proxime  sequuntur,  Sahn  bsnp'n  ,  verto  cum  Bocharto  (Hicroz.  P. 
II.  L.  IV.  Cap.  VIII/T.  III.V *338.  edit.  Lips.),  et  antequam  in- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  X.  367 


gravescat  femur,  i.  e.  gravior  et  tardior  fiat  incessus,  S3S1  collate  cum 


tit 


Arabum  ^ATET^  caput  femoris.  Aliorum  sententias  enarravimus 
in  Notis  ad  Bochartum  1.  c.  p.  334.  seqq.  In  versu  6.  observavit 
iam  Hieronymus,  "  contritionem  hydriae  super  fontem  et  confractio- 
nem  rotae  super  lacum  per  metaphoram  mortis  aenigmata  esse," 
neque  igitur  curiose  inquirendum  est,  quae  corporis  membra  per 
singulas  istas  imagines  intelligantur.  ROSENMUELLER. 

[C.  p.  83.]     ISAIAH  XXVHI.  23— 29. 

Four  methods  of  threshing  are  here  mentioned,  by  different  in- 
struments ;  the  flail,  the  drag,  the  wain,  and  the  treading  of  the  cat- 
tle. The  staff  or  flail  was  used  for  the  grain  that  was  too  tender  to 
be  treated  in  the  other  methods.  The  drag  consisted  of  a  sort  of 
frame  of  strong  planks,  made  rough  at  the  bottom  with  hard  stone  or 
iron  :  it  was  drawn  by  horses  or  oxen  over  the  corn-sheaves  spread 
on  the  floor,  the  drivers  sitting  upon  it.  The  wain  was  much  like 
the  former,  but  had  wheels  with  iron  teeth,  or  edges,  like  a  saw  ; 
and  it  should  seem  that  the  axle  was  armed  with  iron  teeth  or  serrat- 
ed wheels  throughout.  The  drag  not  only  forced  out  the  grain,  but 
cut  the  straw  in  pieces  for  fodder  for  the  cattle  ;  for  in  the  Eastern 
countries  they  have  no  hay.  The  last  method  is  well  known  from 
the  law  of  Moses,  which  '  forbids  the  ox  to  be  muzzled,  when  he 
treadeth  out  the  corn.' 

V.  28.  pTP  tatfe)  I  have  annexed  these  to  the  preceding,  disre- 
garding the  Masoretic  distinction  ;  in  this  I  follow  the  LXX  (though 
they  have  greatly  mistaken  the  sense)  and  Symmachus.  I  suspect* 
also  that  the  1  before  fiFjJj  has  been  obliterated,  which  Symmachus 
expressed  by  the  particle  fit,  the  Vulgate  by  autem.  The  transla- 
tion will  sufficiently  explain  my  reasons.  Ehb,  however,  seems  to 
be  taken  for  corn  Ps.  civ.  14.  and  Eccl.  xi.  1,  "Cast  thy  bread," 
that  is,  "  Sow  thy  seed  or  corn,  upon  the  face  of  the  waters  :"  in 
plain  terms  :  soio  without  any  hope  of  a  liarvest ;  do  good  to  them  on 
whom  you  even  think  your  benefaction  thrown  away.  A  precept  en- 
forcing great  and  disinterested  liberality  :  with  a  promise  annexed 
to  it ;  "  for  after  many  days  thou  shalt  find  it  again  :"  at  length,  if 
not  in  the  present  world,  at  least  in  a  future,  thou  shalt  have  a  re- 
ward. The  learned  Dr.  George  Jubb  suggested  this  explanation, 
which  he  has  elegantly  illustrated  from  Theognis  and  Phocylides, 
who  intimate  that  to  do  acts  of  kindness  to  the  ungrateful  and  un- 
worthy, is  the  same  as  sowing  the  sea : 


308  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  X. 


xcu  ontiQdv  TIQVIOV  aAoff 

aQ  ccv  TIOVTOV  GneiQwv  (3a&u  hq'i'ov  d/ 
Ourf  xctxovg  tu  dguv  iv  nuhv  avxt,\upoi<s. 

THEOG.  Ti/w^u.  v.  105. 

Mrt  xaxoV  (V  i'yZyG'  ont?Qtt,v  tax  laov  ivl  novTca  . 

Phocyl.  v.  142. 

They,  indeed,  invert  the  precept  of  Solomon  ;  nor  is  it  extraor- 
dinary that  they  should  : 

"  Ista  homines  dicas  ;  hoc  posuisse  deum."  LOWTH. 

Locis  citatis  vis  nulla  probandi  inest.  De  loco  Salomonis  sen- 
tentiam  dixi  in  notis  paraphrasi  poeticae  subiectis.  Pertinet  ad 
navigationem  et  commercia.  Ps.  civ.  CtiJ:  non  panis  est,  non  triti- 
cum,  sed  cibus.  MICHAELIS. 

[D.  p.  85.]     Prophetic  parables. 

Hoc  loco  commemoranda  quoque  erat  alia  ab  Ezechiele  pro- 
posita  parabola  (XVII.)  de  vite  ab  aquila  plantata  seduloque  culta, 
mox  vero,  quod  spem  falleret,  extirpata  (vs.  1  —  10),  quam  vates 
statim  (vs.  It  seqq.)  ipse  explicat  de  regis  ludaeorum  a  Babylonio, 
quocum  foedus  sanciverat,  desciscentis  perfidia,  morte  ignominiosa 
ipsi  luenda.  ROSENMUELLER. 

[E  .  p.  85.]     Fables  of  Jotham  and  Nathan. 

Poetry  seems  to  me  to  be  often  strangely  confounded  with  orato- 
ry, from  which  it  is,  however,  very  different.  These  instances  ap- 
pear to  me  only  the  rudiments  of  popular  oratory,  the  ancient  and 
unrefined  mode  of  speaking  ,  as  LIVY  calls  it  :  and  if  the  reader  will 
be  at  the  pains  to  examine  Liv.  L.  ii  c.  32,  I  dare  believe  he  will 
be  of  the  same  opinion.  Poetry,  as  our  author  himself  has  stated,  is 
one  of  the  first  arts,  and  was  in  a  much  more  perfect  state,  than  we 
should  suppose  from  the  passages  in  question,  long  before  the  days 
of  Jotham  :  oratory  is  of  more  recent  origin,  and  was,  we  may  well 
suppose,  at  that  period  in  its  infancy  ;  as  CICERO  remarks  that  it 
was  one  of  the  latest  of  the  arts  of  Greece.  Brut.  c.  7.  MICHAELIS. 

Ad  artem  rhetor  icam  apologorum  usum,  ob  magnam,  quae  eis 
inest,  vim  in  persuadendo,  referebant  Veteres,  vid.  ARISTOTELES 
Rhetor.  II.  20.  (qui  apologos  drjw/oQixovs  appellat,  i.  e.  concioni- 
bus  accommodates),  et  CICERO  de  Orat.  II.  66.  §  264.  Cf.  G.  E, 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XI.  369 


LESSING  von  dem  Vortrage  der  Fabeln,  p.  122.  edit.  prim.  Verissi- 
me  APHTHONIVS,  Progymnasm.  init.  animadvertit,  fabulam  processis- 
se  a  poetis,  sed  cum  oratoribus  communicatam  esseexeo,  quod  prae- 
ceptum  compiectetur.  (  O  fiv&og  TIOH^TMV  /w^V  TiQoi^K'&fv  yfyiyv-* 
viTui  dt  ttui  QTIIOQWV  xoivdg  fx  TtttfjaivtGtws).  Legisse  iuvabit, 
quae  de  lothami  fabula  observavit  HERDER  in  libro  vom  Geist  der 
Ebraeischen  Poesie,  P.  II.  C.  VIII.  p.  275,  et  de  fabulae  origine  in 
universum,  ibid.  p.  13.  seqq.  edit.  prim.  Praeter  lothami  et  Nathanis 
(2  Sam.  xii.  1  seqq.)  apologos,  alius  brevissimus  exstat  2  Reg.  XIV. 
9,  10,  de  carduo  qui  pro  filio  suo  a  cedro  Libani  filiam  in  matrimo- 
nium  postulasset,  mox  vero  a  feris  bestiis  esset  proculcatus,  quo  loas, 
Israelitarum  rex,  Amaziae,  regi  ludae,  dissuadet  bellum,  ad  quod 
ab  eo  f'uerat  provocatus,  illiusque  salse  perstringit  temeritatem,  qui 
cum  potentiore  Israelitarum  rege  vellet  certamen  inire,  et  maiora 
tentare,  quam  assequi,  vel  sustinere  posset.  ROSENMUELLER. 

[F.  p.  86.]     PSALM  LXXX.  16—18. 

V.  16.  Ji33  is  probably  a  verb  in  the  imperative  mode,  with  ft 
paragogic,  from  ]:3  (compare  •pa) ;  and  not  a  noun,  as  Lowth  SUp- 
MI 

poses.  Compare  the  Arabic  (•} >,  texit.  The  meaning  of  the 
passage  is  :  Protect  what  thy  right  hand  hath  planted,  nRSS/atf  ]3 
*f*  ,  the  son  whom  thou  hast  made  strong  for  thyself:  that  is,  the 
Israelitish  nation,  which  God  often  addresses  as  his  son.  (Com- 
pare Ex.  4:  22.  Hos.  11:  1). 

V.  18.  ^^^  'iL^a* ,  the  man  of  thy  right  hand ;  that  is,  he  who 
is  joined  to  thee  by  solemn  covenant ;  because  the  Orientals  swear  by 
raising  the  right  hand  :  or  rather,  according  to  Rosenmueller,  the 
Hebrew  nation  is  called  the  man  of  Gods  right  handt  because  Je- 
hovah had,  by  his  power,  delivered  them  from  Egyptian  bondage. 
(Compare  vs.  9  and  16).  S. 


NOTES  ON   LECTURE  XI. 

[A.  p.  89.]     Mystical  allegory. 

I  admire  the  perspicacity  of  our  author  in  discovering  this  cir- 
cumstance, and  his  candour  in  so  freely  disclosing  his  opinion.     I 
am,  however,  much  inclined  to  suspect  those  qualities  which  are 
47 


370  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XI. 


supposed  to  be  altogether  peculiar  to  the  sacred  poetry  of  the  He- 
brews :  and  there  is,  I  confess,  need  of  uncommon  force  of  argu- 
ment to  convince  me,  that  the  sacred  writings  are  to  be  interpreted 
by  rules  in  every  respect  different  from  those,  by  which  other  writ- 
ings and  other  languages  are  interpreted ;  but  in  truth  this  hypothe- 
sis of  a  double  sense  being  applicable  to  the  same  words,  is  so  far 
from  resting  on  any  solid  ground  of  argument,  that  I  find*it  is  alto- 
gether founded  on  the  practice  of  commentators,  and  their  vague 
and  tralatitious  opinions.  MICHAELIS. 

If  the  Jewish  religion  was  designed  by  the  omniscient  God  to  be 
preparatory  to  the  Christian  ;  if  the  institutions  and  rites  recorded  in 
the  Old  Testament  were  intended  to  prefigure  the  more  perfect  dis- 
pensation revealed  in  the  New :  then  some  parts  of  the  Hebrew 
Scriptures,  at  least,  must  be  interpreted  by  rules  altogether  peculiar, 
and  not  applicable  to  any  other  writings;  for  no  other  writings 
were  ever  designed  to  answer  a  similar  purpose.  No  one  will  deny 
that  the  Supreme  Disposer  of  events  had  power  to  make  the  institu- 
tions and  history  of  the  Jewish  church  typical  of  the  institutions  and 
history  of  the  Christian  ;  and  if  I  understand  the  language  or  prac- 
tice of  the  New  Testament  writers,  they  affirm  that  he  has  done  so. 
The  business  of  allegorizing,  indeed,  has  been  carried  to  danger- 
ous and  ridiculous  excess  by  many  Christian  commentators ;  but 
with  the  limitations  which  Lowth  has  affixed  to  it  (pp.  89 — 91),  I 
see  nothing  unreasonable  in  the  mystical  allegory,  and  it  appears  to 
me  to  be  in  strict  conformity  with  the  usage  of  Christ  and  his  apostles. 
(Compare,  however,  Doederlein,  Instit.  Christ.  Theol.  Tom.  II.  pp. 
228—277).  S. 

[B.  p.  90.]     Figurative  sense  obscured  by  the  literal. 

When  this  happens  to  be  the  case,  how  are  we  to  know,  that  the 
other  subject  or  sentiment,  which  our  author  describes  as  almost 
totally  eclipsed  or  extinguished  by  the  superior  light,  is  intended  by 
the  writer?  If,  as  I  am  fully  persuaded,  a  clear  and  exact  picture  of 
the  Messiah  be  exhibited  in  Psalm  ex.,  what  occasion  is  there  to  ap- 
ply it  also  to  David,  who  never  performed  the  priestly  function,  nor 
ever  sat  at  the  right  hand  of  God,  that  is,  in  the  Holy  of  Holies,  at 
the  right  of  the  ark  of  the  covenant  ?  On  the  contrary,  if  in  Psalm 
xviii.  the  description  of  David's  victories  be  so  predominant,  as  that 
it  can  scarely  be  made  to  speak  any  other  sentiment,  what  occasion 
h  there  to  apply  it  at  all  to  the  Messiah  ?  MICHAELIS. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XI.  371 

[C.  p.  91.]      PSALM  n. 

If,  as  we  learn  from  the  authority  of  the  apostle  Paul,  this  Psalm 
relates  chiefly  to  Christ,  his  resurrection,  and  kingdom;  why  should 
\ve  at  all  apply  it  to  David  1  I  do  not  deny  that  the  victories  of  Da- 
vid, as  well  as  of  other  kings  of  Jerusalem,  to  whom  no  person  has 
thought  of  applying  the  poem  in  question,  might  be  celebrated  in 
language  equally  bold  and  powerful :  but  let  us  remember,  that  we 
have  no  right  to  say  a  work  has  relation  to  every  person  of  whom 
something  similar  might  be  said,  but  to  that  person  alone,  who  is  the 
actual  subject  of  it.  If  Christ,  therefore,  be  the  subject  of  this 
poem,  let  us  set  aside  David  altogether.  MICHAELIS. 

But  if  David  was  a  type  of  the  true  Messiah,  might  not  language 
applicable  to  the  one,  be  applicable  also  to  the  other  1  S. 

[D.  p.  93.]     Mystical  poetry  of  the  East. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  Oriental  nations  are  exceedingly  fond 
of  mystical  poetry,  and  that  they  usually  assign  a  double  sense  to  most 
of  their  favourite  poems.  From  the  remarks  already  made  (Note  A), 
it  is  evident  that  they  can  have  no  mystical  allegory  of  the  kind 
which  we  have  supposed  in  the  Bible  ,  still  it  will  afford  important 
aid  in  this  investigation,  to  know  the  views  of  the  Oriental  world  on 
the  general  subject.  Accordingly,  I  shall  insert  in  this  place  an  ex- 
tract from  SIR  WILLIAM  JONES'S  Commentaries  on  Asiatic  Poetry 
(Chap.  IX.),  which  exhibits  the  reasoning  on  both  sides  of  the  ques- 
tion in  a  very  clear  and  satisfactory  manner. 

"  Sunt  igitur  in  linguis  Asiaticis,  ac  praecipue  Persica,  carmina 
poene  innumerabilia,  quorum  idem  est  argumentum  unusque  fere 
perpetuus  tenor.  Nempe  in  iis  continua  serie  laudantur  amores  ac 
deliciae,  voluptates,  vina,  odores,  ludi,  convivia  ;  et  reliqua  quse  sen- 
sibiis  blandiuntur  :  accedunt  humanae  pulchritudinis  laetae  admodum 
descriptiones ;  intexuntur  loci  illi  communes,  de  fortunae  temeritate, 
de  honorum  ac  falsae  religionis  contemtione  ;  incertos  esse  rerum 
humanarum  eventus,  et  brevem  lucis  ac  vitae  usuram ;  amoris  au- 
tem  suavitates  celeriter  deflorescere ;  oportere  igitur  voluptates,  dum 
licet,  rapere,  et 

TCOIHV  Tt>  oTg  yovv  ^Awpof 

nihil  enim  esse  amore  suavius,  nihil  quod  magis  hominem  deceat. 
Exponuntur  etiam  eae  quae  in  amore  insunt  varias  perturbationes, 
dolor,  segritudo,  desiderium,  spes,  laetitia ;  nunc  amator  absens  Ian- 


372  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XI. 


guet,  dolet,  illachrymat,  runic  ob  arnica?  consortium  vehementer  ex- 
ultat  et  triumphal.  Haec  autem  omnia  describuntur  mira  sententia- 
rum  varietate,  verborum  elegantia,  imaginum  splendore,  et  translati- 
onum  pulcherrimarum  copia. 

"  Poetae,  qui  horum  carmmum  laude  floruerunt,  sunt  innumeri ; 
quorum  tamen  facile  principatum  obtinet  ille,  de  quo  jam  dictum  est, 
Hafez  ;  cujas  politissimum  carmen,  cum  adurnbratione  Latina,  idcir- 
co  hie  apponam,  ut  horum  carminum,  de  quibus  sum  proxime  locu- 
tus,  percipiatur  natura : 

"  Puer,  vini  cyathum  afFer, 
"  Unum  atque  alterum  vini  puri  cyathum  afFer. 
"  Remedium  amoris  aegritudinis,  hoc  est,  vinum, 
("  Iliud  enim  senum  et  juvenum  medicina  est)  affer. 
"  Sol  et  luna  sunt  vinum  et  cyathus, 
'"  In  media  luna  solem  afFer. 
"  Illide  ignem  ilium  nobis  liquidum, 
"  Hoc  est,  ignem  ilium  aquse  similem  afFer. 
"  Si  rosa  transit,  die,  vultu  hilari 
"  Vinum  purum  tanquam  aquam  rosarum,  afFer. 
"  Strepitus  lusciniee  si  non  manet,  oportet 
"  Strepitum  poculorum  afFeras. 

"  Ob  temporum  mutationes  ne  sis  tristis,  sed  identidem 
11  Concentum  citharae  et  fidium  afFer. 
"  Congressum  illius,  nisi  in  somno,  videre  nequeo, 
"  Medicinam,  (vinum)  quae  somni  origo  sit,  afFer. 
"  Quod  si  ebrius  sum,  ecquid  est  remedii  ?  alium  calicem 
"  Ut  prorsus  sensibus  destituar,  afFer. 
"  Unum  atque  alterum  cyathum  Hafezo  da, 
"  Seu  peccatum  sit,  seu  factum  laudabile,  afFer." 

"  Huic  carmini  aliud  subjiciam,  idque  in  amatorio  genere  pul- 
cherrimum,  et  venustis  imaginibus  unice  constans : 

"  Ah !    tota  forma   tua  delicate  fingitur,    unusquisque  locus  ubi  tu  es, 

"  dulcis  est, 

"  Cor  meum  a  dulci  tua  et  mellea  lascivia  hilare  est, 
"  Tanquam  rosee  folium  receiis,  natura  tua  lenis  est, 
"  Tanquam  horti  aeternitatis  cupressus,  ex  omni  parte  suavis  es. 
"  Dissimulatio  et  petulantia  tua  dulcis  est,   prima  lanugo  et  nffivus  in 

"  gena  tua  pulcher, 

"  Oculus  et  supercilium  nitida  sunt,  statura  tua  et  proceritas  amabilis. 
"  Visus  mei  rosetum  a  te  picturis  et  ornamentis  plenum, 
"  Cordis  mei  odor  a  cincinno  tuo  jasmineum  habente  odorem  dulcis  est. 
"  In  amoris  via  a  doloris  torrente  non  est  perfugium, 
"  At  statum  meum  ob  tuatn  amicitiam  jucundum  reddidi. 
"  Ante  oculos  tuos  morior ;  at  in  ilia  esgritudine 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XI.  373 


"  Ob  genam  tuara  splendidam  dolor  meus  dulcis  sit. 
"  In  deserto  indagandi  te  tametsi  undequaque  periculum  est ; 
"  Tamen  Hafez  corde  destitutus,  dum  tuum  adventum  petit,  tranquille 
"  procedit." 

"  De  vera  horum  carminum  significatione  magna  est  opinionum 
diversitas.  Alii  proprium  tantummodo  sensum  agnoscunt,  alii  recon- 
ditius  quiddam  in  iis  ac  divinius  censent  delitescere.  Audiamus 
itaque  utriusque  sententise  defensores.  Aiunt  quidam  animos  hu- 
nianos,  in  corporum  vinculis  et  compagibus  inclusos,  eodem  fere 
modo  (sed  longe  vehementius)  in  divinum  omnium  rerum  procreato- 
rem  affici,  quo  in  arnicas  amatores  ;  nam  ut  amantes  amicarum  re- 
cordantur,  si  qua  res  eorum  oculis  obversetur,  quae  aliquam  habeat 
cum  amato  corpore  cognationem,  sic  animas  nostras  vitae  superioris 
recordatione  et  desiderio  languescere,  si  quando  divinse  pulchritudi- 
nis  adumbratam  quandam  effigiem  videamus.  Hunc  autem  amorem 
ita  esse  ardentem,  ut  ad  insaniam  quandam,  et  quasi  ixaiaGiv  acce- 
dat :  et  quoniam  ea  est  mentium  humanarum  imbecillitas,  ea  sermo 
num,  quibus  utuntur  homines,  inopia,  ut  verbis  ad  hunc  ardorem 
rite  exponendum  accommodatis  careant,  necesse  est  poetae,  ccelesti 
illo  furore  et  divina  permotione  incitati,  iis  utantur  imaginibus  et 
verbis,  quae  maximam  habeant  cum  suis  conceptibus  affinitatem. 
Cum  autem  ii,  qui  divino  amore  inflammentur,  tanquam  ebrii,  a 
mentis  sensu  abstrahantur,  nihil  aptius  esse  po&st,  quam  ebrietatis 
imaginem  ad  hunc  diviniorem  rationis  amissionem  transferre.  Hinc 
osculorum,  hinc  amplexationum,  hinc  deliciarum,  atque  amoenita- 
tum  omnium  in  Persarum  carminibus  descriptiones  ortum  habue- 
runt,  quae  ad  proprium  sensum  restringi  nullo  modo  debent.  Atque 
hoc  ipsi  poetae  satis  aperte  declarant ;  sic  Hafez, 

"  Ebrius  e£t  solummodo  seterni  foederis  amore, 
"  Is  qui,  more  Hafezi,  vinum  purum  bibat." 

Et 

"  Jucundum  cor  sit  illi,  qui  Hafezo  similis 

"  Poculum  vini  seterni  fcederis  capiat." 
Et  alibi, 

"  Amoris  ebrietas  capiti  tuo  non  inest ; 

"  Abi  :  tu  enim  succo  uvarum  ebrius  es."      f 
Et  Sadi, 

"  Forsan  unus  amoris  odor  te  inebriabit, 

"  Et  faciet  te  foedus  divinum  quaerere." 
Sic  etiam  poeta  Turcicus  Rulii  Bagdadi, 

"  Noli  putare  nos  uva3  succo  ebrios  esse, 

"  Nos  eas  tabernas  colimus,  ubi  divini  federis  vino  inebriemur.' 


374  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XI. 

"  Haec  illi.  Nunc  prodeant  ii  qui  huic  sententiae  adversantur. 
Damus,  inquiunt,  haec,  si  de  translatione  vel  snnplici  vel  etium  con- 
tinuata  loquamini  ;  sed  haec  translatio  per  longum  poema  perpetua 
serie  dedaci  nullo  pacto  potest.  Licet  poetae  religioso  dicere,  se  ad 
divinum  numen  accedere  non  minus  ardenter  cupere,  quam  amator 
amicam  videre  ;  sed  non  utique  licet  propriam  notionem  penitus  di- 
mitterre,  et  imaginibus  ab  amore  humano  petitis  per  longissimum 
opus  perpetuo  uti.  Id  qui  faciunt,  aenigmata  non  versus  scribere 
censendi  sunt. 

"  Permuta  enim  imaginem  :  dulcissime  certe  et  tenerrime  inquit 
vates  Hebraeus, 

"  Velut  cervus  rivos  aquarum  ardenter  desiderat, 
"  Sic  tui  desiderio,  Deus,  anima  mea  flagrat." 

Cuiquamne  vero  concederemus,  ut  continue  carmina  perlonga  con- 
texeret,  in  quibus  de  rivulis,  de  cervis,  de  sitis  aegritudine,  de  herba- 
rum  amcenitate,  de  sylvis  ac  pratis  solummodo  loqueretur  ?  Quae  au- 
tem  narrant  de  anima  nostra  in  corporis  catenis  inclusa,  vitaeque  di- 
vinioris  desiderio  flagrante,  et  quse  sequuntur,  ea  fere  sunt  Platonica. 
At  quidnam  esse  causae  putemus,  cur  Platonis  viri  gravissimi  versi- 
culos  de  Agathone,  de  Astere,  de  Dione,  de  Archianassa,  nemo  un- 
quam  extiterit,  qui  ad  sensum  reconditiorem  interpretaretur  ;  quae 
vero  poetae  Asiatici,  homines,  ut  scimus,  admodum  voluptuarii,  de 
amoribus  ac  deliciis  scribunt,  ea  divina,  ea  pietatis  plena,  ea  ftinnri- 
QIOV  quoddam  continere  dicamus?  Multa  sunt  a  Grsecis  poetis,  ac 
praesertim  a  Lyricis,  et  cogitata  et  scripta  venustissime  ;  quae  tamen 
nemo  est  nisi  simpliciter  et  proprie  interpretatus.  Quid  ?  sex  illos 
elegantes  versiculos,  qui  cum  poesi  Persica  mirifice  congruunt, 


GTOflUTQQ  VfKTCtQlOV  n 

i  ykrjvcu  KatflijGtv  vn  OtyQVGi 
2nldyyva)i>  qfi(Tt'Q(Di>  dixrva, 

Kul  fjia^ol  ykayofv 
JEvytvfts,  ndarjg 

ad  proprium  sensum  restringendos,   nemo  est  qui  non  censeat  :  illos 
vero  Hafezo  versus, 

"  Capit  vesica  Sinensis  odorem  moschi  ab  illis  crinibus, 

"  Crines  autem  talem  odorem  ab  ilia  gena  recipiunt  : 

"  In  terram  demittitur  cupressus  lasciva  ob  illam  staturam, 

"  Pudore  afFecta  sedet  rosa  horti  ob  illam  genam  : 

"  Verecundans  abit  flos  jasmini  ob  illud  corpus, 

"  Sanguinem  stillat  color  floris  purpurei  (Argovan)  ob  illam  genam." 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XI.  375 


"  Hos,  inquam,  versus  ad  divinum  nescio  quid  pertinere  existimant. 
Quid  ?  cum  scribat  Mimnermus,  belle,  ut  solet, 
1*1$  df  fit>6$,  ri  de  TSQUVOV  uvsv  XQVorj 

Te&valr}v,  orf  pot  (tr^tu  xavia  {ithoi, 
R'QVTiTOtdirj  qihoiyg,  %al  [4(tt.i%ct  dto^a,  xai 

quisquamne  arbitratur  poetam  per  auream  illam  Venerem  per  dulcia 
amoris  dona,  perfurtivos  illos  complexus,  pietatem  et  divinum  amo- 
rem  intelligere  ?  Cur  ideo  putemus  Mesihium,  poetam  Turcicum, 
cum  dicat  elegantissime, 

"  Ne  me,  Deus,  in  sepulchrum  perducas, 

"  Donee  amicse  meae  gremium  amplexu  teneam," 

quippiam  reconditum  aut  cceleste  innuisse  ?    Quid?     versus  illos 

Hafezianos, 

"  Pulvinar  in  rosarium  afFer,  ut  pulchri  pueri  et  ancillffi 

"  Labia  premas,  genas  osculeris,  et  vinum  bibas  rosse  odore  praeditum  :" 

Et  illos, 

"  A  gena  puellse  nymphes  similem  habentis  vultum, 
"  Tanquam  Hafez,  merum  hauri :" 

Et  ilium  ardenti  affectu  plenum, 

"  Labium  super  labium  pone,  o  vini  ministra,  et  dulcem  meam  animam  ebibe  :': 

annon  ad  terrenos  amores  spectare  consendum  est? 

"  Quod  si  plura  argumenta  ex  ipsis  poetarum  Asiaticorum  car- 
minibus  depromenda  sint,  permulta  proferre  possimus  exempla,  qui- 
bus  perspicuum  sit  Hafezo  atque  aliis,  Mohammedem  et  ipsam  re- 
ligionem  ludibrio  fuisse ;  velut  cum  dicat, 

"  Acre  illud  (vinum)  quod  vir  religiosus  (Mohammedes)  matrem  pecca- 

"  torum  vocitat, 
"  Optabilius  nobis  ac  dulcius  videtur  quam  virginis  suavium :" 

Et 

"  Nos  vino  puro  amoris  inebriamur, 

"  Fontes  autem  ccelestes  (Salsebil  et  Cafur)  non  sitimus  :" 

Et  alibi  plus  millies. 

11  Ac  profecto  satis  intelligere  nequimus,  cur  poetas  credamus 
hujusmodi  involucris  ac  tegumentis  velle  celare  eas  virtutes,  quibus 
nihil  laudabilius  esse  potest,  pietatem  ac  Dei  cultum ;  amores  vero 
impudicos,  et  qui  maxime  humano  generi  dedecori  sint,  aperte  profi- 
teri.  Multo  certe  verisimilius  est,  poetas  illos,  utcunque  sensum 
quendam  occultum  innuere  videantur,  eo  solum  praetextu  uti,  ut  ci- 
ves  suos  credulos  et  religiosos  decipiant,  et  voluptatibus  liberius  in- 
dulgeant.  Ac  ne  ipsis  quidem  Persis,  (doctioribus  scilicet)  Hafezi 


376  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XII. 

carmina  arcanam  habere  significationem  visa  sunt :  nam  Sudius,  om- 
nium eruditissimus  interpretum,  proprium  tantum  verborum  sensum 
in  illius  versibus  explicat.  Praeterea  memorise  proditum  est,  (illo 
poeta  mortuo)  primaries  urbis  Shirazi  viros,  sepulturam  ei  ob  carmi- 
num  impudicitiam  concedere  noluisse  ;  cum  vero  magna  esset  inter 
eos  concertatio,  aliis  ut  sepeliretur  suadentibus,  aliis  vehementer  de- 
hortantibus,  ad  sortes  se  contulisse,  et  ipsius  poetae  librum  divinatio- 
nis  causa  aperuisse ;  cum  autem  primus,  qui  sese  illis  obtulit  versus, 
esset, 

"  Gressura  noli  retorquere  ab  Hafezi  exequiis, 

"  Tametsi  enim  peccatis  demersus  sit,  in  coelum  intrabit ;" 

sacerdotes  illico  consensisse,  et  poetam  humavisse  in  illo  loco,  Mo- 
sella  dicto,  quern  ipse  in  carminibus  celebravisset.  Ita  disputant 
utriusque  sententiae  propugnatores  :  equidem  veterum  Academico- 
rum  morem,  nihil  ut  affirmem,  strenue  tenebo ;  ita  tamen  ut  non  ne- 
gem,  quin  mihi  disputatio  secunda  ad  veritatem  propensior  esse  vi- 
deatur." 

This  subject  will  be  resumed  in  the  Notes  on  Lect.  XXXI.    S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XII. 

[A.  p.  97.]     ISAIAH  xvii.  12, 13. 

These  five  words,  ]1N^  13^33  Q"^  <ptfttJ2>  B*£$~»  are  wanting 
in  seven  manuscripts  :  in  two  of  them,  v.  12,  for  fi^ss  we  read 
En3"T  So  also  the  Syriac  version,  which  agrees  with  them.  These 
five  words  are  not  necessary  to  the  sense :  and  seem  to  be  repeated 
only  by  the  carelessness  of  the  transcriber.  KENNICOTT. 

Crisin  hanc  Kennicotianam  in  hunc  locum  merito  castigat  DAY. 
KOCHERVS  in  Vindiciis  S.  Textus  Hebraei  Esaiae  Vatis  adversus 
Roberti  Lowthi  Criticam  (Bern.  1786.  in  octon.),  p.  102.  his  ver- 
bis  :  "  Enimvero  verborum  phrasiumque  repetitiones  illae  cum  ve- 
nustate,  et  gratia  maiorem  vim  atque  virtutem  coniungunt,  ut  nihil 
inde  tolli,  locumque  aliis  similibus  apud  Esaiam  repetitionibus  de- 
fendendis  enotari  cupiam.  Ecquis  non  laudat  Virgiliana  e.  g.  ilia 
(Eclog.  VII.  4)  : 

Ambo  florentes  aetatibus,  Arcades  ambo. 

Et  Eel.  x.  75. 

Shirgamus  :  solet  esse  gravis  cantantibus  umbra ; 
luniperi  gravis  umbra,  nocent  et  frugibus  umbrae. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XII.  377 

Et  qualia  de  hoc  genere  multa  congessit  Vossius,  Rhetoricor.  L.  V. 
C.  3.  Sed  inprimis  contulisse  iuvabit  Psalmos  cxviii.  cxxiv.  alios- 
que.  Adde  locos  Esai.  xi.  5.  xv.  8.  xvi.  7.  xl.  7.  8.  lix.  10."  Om- 
nes  quoque,  praeter  Syriacam,  versiones  veteres  consentiunt  in  ex- 
primendis  illis  verbis,  quae  hodiernum  in  codicibus  innumeris  repetita 
leguntur.  ROSENMUELLER. 

[B.  p.  100.]     ISAIAH  LV.  10, 11. 

This  passage  of  the  prophet  loses  much  of  its  poetical  beauty  if 
it  be  not  rightly  understood.  He  is  not  speaking  of  that  grace, 
which  the  school  divines  treat  of,  and  which  has  been  celebrated 
since  the  time  of  Augustin  in  so  many  controversies,  nor  of  the 
virtue  and  efficacy  of  the  gospel  in  correcting  the  morals  of  man- 
kind, but  of  the  certain  accomplishment  of  the  prophetic  word.  It 
was  very  customary  among  the  Hebrews  to  compare  the  word  of 
God,  and  particularly  the  word  of  prophecy,  to  a  shower  of  rain, 
Deut.  xxxii.  2.  Ezek.  xxi.  2.  Mic.  ii.  6.  Job  xxix.  22,  23.  When, 
therefore,  it  is  their  intention  to  describe  the  certain  and  inevitable 
accomplishment  of  the  divine  oracles,  they  represent  the  earth  as 
impregnated  and  fertilized  by  this  refreshing  rain.  Isaiah  has  cel- 
ebrated in  the  xlth  chapter,  as  well  as  in  the  chapter  under  our  con- 
sideration, vs.  3,  4,  and  5,  the  eternal  covenant  of  God  with  the  Is- 
raelites, and  the  accomplishment  of  that  perpetual  and  permanent 
grace  which  he  had  sworn  to  David,  namely,  that  an  eternal  and  im- 
mortal King  should  sit  upon  his  throne ;  and  that  he  should  rule  and 
direct  the  heathen.  If  these  should  appear  to  any  person  above  cred- 
ibility, he  advises  him  to  recollect  that  the  divine  counsels  are  far 
above  the  reach  of  the  human  understanding  ;  and  that  those  things 
are  easy  to  him,  which  appear  most  difficult  to  us.  He  adds,  that 
the  sacred  oracles,  however  miraculous,  will  most  assuredly  be  ful- 
filled ;  that  the  word  of  God  may  be  compared  to  snow  or  rain  ; 
which  does  not  return  to  heaven,  before  it  has  performed  its  office  of 
watering  and  fecundating  the  earth :  so  it  is  with  the  prophetic  de- 
crees ,  or  the  divine  predictions  of  future  events.  And  in  this  light  I 
understand  the  passage  from  the  context,  both  from  what  precedes, 
and  what  follows.  There  is  one  similar  in  xlv.  8,  but  the  idea 
is  more  condensed,  assuming  rather  the  form  of  a  metaphor  or  alle- 
gory, than  of  a  comparison. 

"  Rumpimini  coeli  desuper, 

"  Nubila  fluant  veritate. 
48 


378  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XII. 

"  Pandat  se  terra,  foecundent  earn  victoriis, 
"  Veritasque  cum  illis  propullulet." 

In  Arabic  p^iz:  signifies  truth ;  and  this  sense  of  the  word  is 
very  frequent  in  Isaiah,  (see  41:  26,  etc.).  Also  y&*  ,  njpttT  ,  and 
MSIttJPi,  appropriately  pertain  to  victories.  (See  2  Kings  5: 1.  1  Sam. 
14:  45.  Isa.  19.  20.  Obad.  21,  etc.).  MICHAELIS. 

Nomen  SID*  ,  quod  les.  XLV.  8.  legitur,  ubique  salutem  in  uni- 
versum  denotat,  nee  usquam,  ut  nomina  Srwjl  Mi*  et  najnizin ,  ad  victo- 
riam  restringitur.  Neque  victoriae  notio  lesaiano  loco  satis  apta. 
Describitur  seculi  aurei  felicitas,  quo  tota  mundi  machina  sit  reno- 
vanda.  lovae  iussu  nova  et  felicior  totius  naturae  facies  apparet ; 
ita  quidem,  ut  coelum  serenum  roret  non  aquarum  guttas,  uti  nunc, 
sed  virtutis  et  iustitiae  semina,  quae  a  terra  sese  aperiente  excepta 
in  ea  primum  germen,  turn  plantas  saluberrimas  salutis  atque  virtu- 
tis proferant.  ROSENMUELLER. 

[C.  p.  102.]     PSALM  LXXXIII.  13—15. 

Between  these  two  comparisons  there  exists  so  nice  a  relation, 
that  they  would  from  one  simple  comparison,  were  it  not  that  the 
sententious  distribution  of  the  verses  had  disposed  the  subject  in  a 
different  form  and  order.  Their  threshing-floors  were  so  construct- 
ed in  open  situations,  that  when  the  corn  was  beaten  out,  the  wind 
carried  off  the  chaff  and  straw,  which  being  collected  together,  was 
burnt.  See  Isai.  v.  24.  Matt.  iii.  12.  and  HAMMOND'S  Com.  LOWTH. 

The  wicked  are  first  compared  to  the  chaff,  which  is  driven  be- 
fore the  whirlwind ;  and  then  their  destruction  is  painted  in  a  manner 
still  more  terrific,  by  comparing  them  to  mountain  forests  in  flames. 
(Compare  Virgil,  Aen.  II.  304,  305.  X.  495  seqq.  Georg.  II.  SOS- 
SI  1  ;  and  Homer.  II.  XL  155).  S. 

[D.  p.  103.]     JOB  vi.  17. 

iMStt  !)^'"!^  n$a.  According  to  Rosenmueller  and  Gesenius, 
the  verb  i^t,  like  the  Syriac  «.— liit ,  signifies  to  become  narrow,  to 
be  enclosed :  and  they  suppose  the  sense  of  the  passage  to  be  :  As 
soon  as  the  streams  are  confined  to  their  proper  channels,  (which  they 
had  overflowed  in  consequence  of  the  thawing  of  the  snow  and  ice), 
they  pass  away,  or  become  dry.  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIII.  379 

NOTES  ON   LECTURE  XIII. 

[A.  p.  104.]     Personification. 

The  passions  of  resentment  and  love  have  been  very  accurately 
traced  by  some  late  writers  on  the  human  mind,  into  the  senses  of 
pain  and  pleasure  ;  the  one  arising  from  the  habitual  inclination  to 
remove  what  is  hurtful ;  the  other  from  that  of  possessing  what  is  a 
source  of  grateful  sensations,  and  a  means  of  increasing  pleasure. 
(See  HARTLEY  on  Man,  and  a  Dissertation  prefixed  to  KING'S  Ori- 
gin of  Evil).  The  strong  expression  of  these  passions  is,  however, 
chiefly  directed  to  rational,  or  at  least  to  animated  beings;  but  this  s 
is  the  effect  of  reason  and  habit.  The  passions  are  still  the  same, 
and  will  frequently  display  themselves  in  opposition  to  reason.  A 
child  turns  to  beat  the  ground,  or  the  stone,  that  has  hurt  him  ;  (see 
Lord  KAIMES'S  Elements  of  Criticism  ;)  and  most  men  feel  some  de- 
gree of  affection  even  for  the  old  inanimate  companions  of  their  hap- 
piness. From  these  dispositions  originates  the  figure,  which  is  the 
great  and  distinguishing  ornament  of  poetry,  the  prosopopoeia.  This 
figure  is  nearly  allied  to  the  metaphor,  and  still  more  to  the  metony- 
my ;  it  is  to  the  latter,  what  the  allegory  is  to  the  metaphor.  Thus 
when  we  say — "  Youth  and  beauty  shall  be  laid  in  the  dust,"  for 
persons  possessing  youth  and  beauty,  it  is  hard  to  determine  wheth- 
er it  be  a  metonymy  or  a  prosopopo3ia.  Lyric  poetry,  in  which  the 
imagination  seems  to  have  the  fullest  indulgence,  and  which  abounds 
with  strong  figures,  is  most  favourable  to  personification.  GREGORY. 

[B.  p.  105.]     ISAIAH  XLVII.  1. 

Sitting  on  the  ground  was  a  posture  that  denoted  deep  misery 
and  distress.  The  prophet  JEREMIAH  has  given  it  the  first  place 
among  many  indications  of  sorrow,  in  that  elegant  description  of  the 
distress  of  his  country,  (Lam.  ii.  8.)  '  The  elders  of  the  daughter  of 
Sion  sit  on  the  ground,  they  are  silent,'  etc.  '  We  find  Judea,' 
says  Mr.  ADDISON,  (on  Medals,  Dial,  ii.)  '  on  several  coins  of  Ves- 
pasian and  Titus,  in  a  posture  that  denotes  sorrow  and  captivity. — I 
need  not  mention  her  sitting  on  the  ground,  because  we  have  already 
spoken  of  the  aptness  of  such  a  posture  to  represent  extreme  afflic- 
tion. I  fancy  the  Romans  might  have  an  eye  to  the  customs  of  the 
Jewish  nation,  as  well  as  those  of  their  country,  in  the  several  marks 
of  sorrow  they  have  set  on  this  figure.  The  psalmist  describes  the 
Jews  lamenting  their  captivity  in  the  same  pensive  posture :  '  By  the 


380  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIII. 

waters  of  Babylon  we  sat  down  and  wept,  when  we  remembered  thee, 
O  Sion.'  But  what  is  more  remarkable,  we  find  Judea  represented 
as  a  women  in  sorrow  sitting  on  the  ground,  in  a  passage  of  the  pro- 
phet, that  foretels  the  very  captivity  recorded  on  this  medal.'  LOWTH. 

[C.  p.  108.]      JUDGES  v.  29,  30. 

Nisi  forte  verti  debet,  et  ipsa  (mater  Sisserae)  respondet  illi,  fe- 
minae  sapienti,  se  solanti.  Est  nemque  in  versu  30  elegans  colloquii 
muliebris  imitatio,  matre  Sisserae  amplius  aliquid  semper  sperante, 
quam  virgines  eius  promiserant,  earumque  voces,  tanquam  nimis 
timidas  corrigente.  Virgines  interrogant :  nonne  invenient — :  inter- 
pellat  mater  :  divident  spolium  ?  quod  plus  morae  habet.  Illae  :  pu- 
ellam  uterum  gestantem  pro  viro  :  haec  :  imo  binas  puellas,  gravi- 
da$.  Illae  :  praedam  versicolorem  Sisserae :  haec :  imo  praedam 
versicolorem  acupictam,  versicolorem,  utrimque  acupictam,  pro  collo 
captorum  equorum.  MICHAELIS. 

Sed  nos  admodum  veremur,  ne  regulis  linguae  contraria  sit  haec 
opinio  quantumvis  ingeniosa.  Nam  primo  verbum  y-DH,  si  respon- 
dere  significat,  habere  solet  accusativum  personae,  cui  respondetur 
(vid.  Num.  xxii.  8.  los.  xiv.  7.  2  Sam.  iii.  11.  xxiv.  13.  1  Reg. 
xii.  16.  a!.),  neque  vel  unicus  locus  nobis  constat,  in  quo  con- 
structum  sit  cum  dativo.  Obstat  praeterea  pronomen  in  rp^EN,  quia 
non  dicitur  115DN  initt  iniBn,  sed  itttf  initf  ^U3n.  Denique  nl? 
non  recte  refertur  ad  plures  feminas  sapientes,  niftDh ,  sed  absque 
omni  dubio  pertinere  debet  ad  personam  illam,  quae  loquens  induci- 
tur.  Nostro  igitur  iudicio  certus  ac  unice  verus  verborum  sensus 
ille  est,  ipsam  matrem  Siserae  sermones  suos  querulos  sibi  revocasse, 
retractasse,  et  quae  sequuntur  v.  30  verba  esse  solius  matris,  solatia 
comitum  admittentis,  atque  nunc,  quia  facile  creditur  quod  optatur, 
in  laetissimam  spem  ac  immodica  fere  gaudia  effusae.  C.  F. 
SCHNVRRER  Carmen  JDeborae  lud.  V.  in  Dissertatt.  Philologico 
Critt.  p.  87.  ROSENMUELLER. 

For  a  beautiful  translation  of  the  Song  of  Deborah,  see  Herder, 
Briefe,  Th.  I.  S.  105  ff. ;  and  Geist,  Th.  II.  S.  237  ff.  See  also  Note 
A  on  Lect.  XXVIII.  S. 

[D.  p.  110.]     Triumphal  odes  of  the  Hebrews. 

Nempe  et  hoc  proprium  ac  privum  est  poetis  Hebraeorum,  ut  me- 
dio  carmini  illud  intexant  sonantius  iam  et  maius  carmen,  cui  collata 
reliqua  oratio  paene  prosa  videtur  ;  fingantque  epinicium,  aut  epice- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIII.  381 

dium,  pro  more  gentis  a  poetis  mulieribusve  canendum.  les.  xxvi.  1 
seqq.  xxvii.  2, 3,  4,  5.  lerem.  ix.  16 — 20.  Ezech.  xxxii.  2  seqq.  Cu- 
jus  prosopopeiae  mira  vis  est,  turn  quia  magis  videmur  nobis  in  rem 
praesentem  venire,  ipsisque  iam  victoriis  aut  malis  interesse,  epini- 
cia  ista  aut  epicedia  audientes :  turn  quod  admirabilius  quid  ac  divi- 
nius  persentiscimus,  cum  reliqui  carminis  sensu  iam  adfecti  maius 
aliud  auribus  haurimus.  Quo  in  genere  pro  more  suo  novus  est, 
illisque,  quos  imitatur,  audacior  Habacucus,  II.  6  seqq.  carmen 
ludicrum  et  acerbe  laetum  componens,  quo  Babyloni  gentes,  duram 
antea  expertae  servitutem,  insultabunt.  Dignum  illud,  quod  hie  le- 
geretur  :  sed  servare  eius  explicationem  liceat  Collegio  Critico  in 
Habacucum,  propediem  edendo.  MICHAELIS. 

Quod  hie  promittit  Michaelis  Collegium  Criticum  in  Habacu- 
cum lucem  nunquam  vidit.  Sed  Habacuci  nobilissimum  carmen, 
quo  gentes  Babyloni  destructae  insultantes  inducuntur,  apponere  lu- 
bet  ex  lac.  Aug.  Thuani  paraphrasi  poetica,  eaque  elegantissima, 
paucis  tamen  hodie  cognita.  Est  vero  talis  : 

Victorum  sed  mox  populorum  fabula  fiet, 

Atque  erit  haec  vulgi  naenia  in  ore  frequens. 
Vae  late  regi,  quern  non  sua  semper  habendi 

Fervida  inexhausto  torret  amore  sitis. 
Nam  quousque  insultans  grassabitur,  et  quasi  glebas 

In  cumulos  densas  coges  iniquus  opes  ? 
An  dubitas  quin  mox,  Babylon  male  conscia,  surgant 

Qui  rabido  versa  te  vice  dente  petant, 
Quique  tuos  uncis  lament  crudeliter  artus 

Vnguibus,  et  rapiant  quae  tibi  rapta  prius  ? 
Te  ditem  exuviis  aliorum  fortior  alter 

Exuet,  exemplo  cuncta  feretque  tuo. 
Quippe  tibi  sanguis  effusus  in  urbe  piorum, 

Vexati  eives,  vi  populatus  ager. 
Vae  nimias  quisquis  privae  munimina  sorti 

Sollicito  studio  condit  avarus  opes  : 
Scilicet  ut  celsa  nidum  sibi  figat  in  arce, 

Et  procul  hostileis  rideat  inde  minas. 
Consilium,  O  Babylon,  cepisti  perfida  rebus, 

Cuius  te  pudeat  poeniteatque  tuis. 
Totque  trucidatis  populis  mens  conscia  facti 

Exagitat  diro  turbida  corda  metu. 
Namque  age,  magnificas  alienis  sumptibus  aedeis, 

Ex  spoliis  pulcras  extrue,  praedo,  domos  ; 
Tollenti  gemitus  lapidi  lignum  adstrepit  ecce 

Adversum,  querulos  consociatque  sonos. 
Vae  tibi !  per  caedes  qnisquis  fundamina  magnae 


382  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIII. 

Urbis,  perque  nefas  aedificanda  locas. 
Nam  Deus  armipotens  veniet,  qui  vota  nialorum 

In  venturu  et  rapidas  ire  iubebit  aquas. 
Qui  facit  ut  populus,  quasi  qui  secat  ense  favillam, 

Affligat  casso  membra  Jabore  nocens. 
Qui  facit  et  celebri  divina  ubi  gloria  laude 

Tollitur  ut  populum  copia  laeta  beet, 
Et  iubare  aethereo  terram  lux  impleam  omnem, 

Implet  ut  aequoreos  fluctibus  unda  sinus. 
Vae  !  socio  quisquis  vinum  cum  felle  propinas, 

Et  tentas  sensus  debilitasque  caput, 
Scilicet  ut  pateant  cunctis  reddenda  iacentis 

Membra  verecundo  iussa  pudore  tegi. 
Tu  quoque  laude  tumens  et  laetis  ebrie  rebus 

Triste  ignominiae  dedecus  hide  feres. 
Namque  et  vina  bibes,  et  nudus  membra  iacebis, 

Et  de  te  dignus  vindice  risus  erit. 
Ipse  Deus  propria  miscebit  pocula  dextra, 

E  calice  et  fundet  tristia  musta  suo  : 
Nee  non  etmale  sumpta  vomes,  vomituque  probroso 

Inficies  partum  pulcra  per  arma  decus. 
Te  Libani  adflicti  colles,  te  lapsus  iniquo 

Obruet  exesi  pondere  mentis  apex, 
Foetaque  lustra  feris  deserter  unique  locorum 

Praesentem  incutiet  tristis  imago  me  turn. 
Nempe  quod  effusus  Solyma  tibi  sanguis  in  urbe, 

Vis  facta  indigenis,  et  populatus  ager. 
Atque  in  figmentis  quae  spes  ?    quid  sculptile  prodest 

Conflatum  artifici  numen  inane  manu  ? 
Quaeve  adeo  spes  esse  potest  in  imagine  falsa, 

Aut  quae  vis  in  eo,  qui  simulacra  facit  ? 
Vae  !    quisquis  ligno  ad  surdas  miser  occinit  aureis, 

Surge,  aut  qui  lapides  evigilare  iubet. 
Mutane  te  doceant  vitaeque  carentia  sensu 

Arcanos  sensus  saxea  signa  Dei  ? 
Vndique  quamquam  auro  circumlita,  quamquam  argento 

Auro  tamen  blando  nulla  calore  fovet. 
At  Dominus  coeli  residens  super  ardua  templa 

Hinc  notat  aeternis  omnia  luminibus. 
Illius  adspectu  lucis  stet  pontus  et  aer, 

Et  tacito  stupeat  territa  terra  metu. 

Legitur  haec  paraphrasis  in  libro  qui  inscributur  :  Asfatidicus,  sive 
Duodccim  Prophetae  minor es  Latina  metaplirasi poetica  expositipar- 
tim  a  IACOBO  AVGVSTO  THVANO,  Senatus  Parisiensis  Praeside,  par- 
tim  a  CVNRADO  RITTERSHVSIO  1C.  et  Antecessore  Academiae  Nori- 
cae.  Ambergae,  1604.  8.  p.  215  seqq.  ROSENMUELLER. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIV. 


NOTES  ON   LECTURE  XI^ 

[A.  p.  116.]    JOB  in.  3. 

Our  author  exaggerates  a  little  the  boldness  and  energy  of  this 
passage,  conceiving  that  to  be  an  unusual  phraseology,  which  is  only 
uncommon  to  us.  There  will  be  an  opportunity  of  mentioning  the 
change  or  enallage  of  the  tenses  in  the  next  Lecture.  The  ellipsis 
of  the  relative  pronoun  TJJIK  (which)  is  not  at  all  harsh  and  unusual ; 
nothing  is  more  common  in  the  Arabic,  it  being  accounted  among 
the  elegancies  of  language,  nor  is  it  unusual  with  the  Hebrews. 
Even  with  the  English,  the  pronoun  which  is  very  frequently  omitted. 

MICHAELIS. 

[B.  p.  116.]     Job  and  Jeremiah  compared. 

"  Egregie  et  verissime  observatum.  lobi  est  tragica  ilia  et  regia 
tristitia,  dicam,  an  desperatio :  leremiae  flebiles  elegi,  misericordi- 
am  provocantes,  nee  lacrimis  maior  luctus.  duod  ut  toto  orationis 
colore  facile  agnoscent  poetico  sensu  non  destituti :  ita  magis  tamen 
lucet,  et  exotericis  etiam  explicari  potest,  ubi  in  eandem  uterque 
imaginem  incidit.  Repetant,  quaeso,  lectores,  iterumque  degustent 
comparationem  amicorum  lobi  cum  rivo  perfido,  cuius  versionem 
noster  pag.  103  dedit :  eiusque  haustu  ac  tanquam  spiritu  pleni,  ad 
elegantes,  lugubres,  sed  exiles  accedant  leremiae  elegos,  xv.  18. 

"  Quare  est  dolor  meus  perpetuus, 
"  Et  vulnus  meum  intractabile, 
"  Refugiens  medelam  ! 
"  Factus  es  mihi,  ut  fons  deficiens, 
"  Vt  aquae  non  fidae  !" 

Versionem,  in  nonnullis  novam,  ne  gratis  sumere  videar,  moneo,  pri- 
mo,  U33fij  proprie  moUitiem  significare,  ex  Arabico  ^JCjf :  mollia  au- 
tenrvulnera  esse,  adeo  aegre  ac  dolorifica,  ut  manum  medicam  non 
admittant :  deinde,  non  opus  esse,  ut  3Tptf  iniurie  in  Deum  ac  rus- 
tice,  mendacem  simpliciter  vertamus,  sed  fontis  mendacis,  seu  aesta- 
te  deficientis,  significatum  vocabulo  commode  tribui  posse,  nostro 
loco  aptissimum.  Confer  enim  phrasin  les.  LVIII.  11.  Atque  haud 
scio,  an  a  fonte  aut  rivo,  hibernis  imbribus  aucto,  sed  per  aestatem 
deficiente,  Ecdippae  urbi,  IPTDN  Hebraice,  nomen  ductum  sit,  idem- 
que  illi  acciderit,  quod  permultis  urbibus,  ut  a  situ,  loci  ingenio, 
rivo,  fonte,  monte,  npmen  sortiantur.  MICHAELIS. 


384  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XV. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XV. 

[A.  p.  124.]     Paronomasia. 

In  Isa.  x.  30,  the  epithet  {-P33J  is  applied  rrins?  in  allusion  to 
the  meaning  or  etymology  of  the  name  :  as  if  the  prophet  had  said  : 
"  Ah  !  nimis  ex  vero  mine  tibi  nomen  erit." 

I  would  remark  here,  that  if  the  reader  desires  to  understand 
how  much  the  prophets,  and  particularly  Isaiah,  are  attached  to 
beauties  of  this  kind,  he  may  be  satisfied  by  consulting  the  follow- 
ing passages.  Isa.  v.  7.  xiii.  6.  xxiv.  17.  xxvii.  7.  xxxiii.  1.  Ivii.  6. 
Ixi.  3.  Ixv.  11,  12.  Jer.  li.  2.  Ezek.  vii.  6.  Hos.  ix.  15.  Amos  v. 
5.  Mic.  i.  10—15.  Zeph.  ii.  4.  See  also  Gen.  ix.  27.  xlix.  8,  16, 
19.  LOWTH. 

Paronomasia  is  a  favourite  figure  among  all  the  Oriental  po- 
ets, and  their  taste  for  it  might  have  originated  in  part  from  the 
aid  it  gives  to  the  memory  ;  as  most  of  their  early  poetry  was  neces- 
sarily preserved  by  oral  tradition.  Some  mnemonic  expedient  of 
this  sort  is  found  in  the  early  poetry  of  all  nations.  Our  taste  on 
such  subjects  is  very  much  a  matter  of  habit ;  and  the  paronomasia 
of  some  of  the  old  English  divines  can  appear  no  more  puerile  to  us, 
than  rhyme,  (which  we  approve  in  the  most  elevated  style  of  poetry), 
would  appear  to  the  poets  of  Greece  and  Rome.  Indeed,  rhyme  is 
nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  regular  recurrence  of  paronomasia,  and 
if  we  are  not  offended  by  it  in  such  productions  as  Pope's  transla- 
tion of  the  Iliad  or  Spencer's  Fairy  Queen,  we  can  have  little  rea- 
son, on  the  ground  of  taste,  to  condemn  paronomasia  in  the  writings 
of  the  Hebrew  prophets.  This  figure  is  sometimes  used  by  the 
purest  of  the  Latin  writers,  as  in  Virgil, 

"  Discolor  unde  auri  per  ramos  aura  refulsit;" 

and  Cicero  against  Verres,  "  quod  nunquam  hujusmodi  everriculum 
in  provincia  ulla  fuit."  Consult  the  article  on  paronomasia  in  Pro- 
fessor Stuart's  Hebrew  Grammar  (§§  570.  571.  3d  edit.) ;  and  Sir 
Wm.  Jones's  Commentaries  on  Asiatic  Poetry,  (Chap. VIII.)  S. 

[B.  p.  127.]     Use  of  tenses  in  Hebrew. 

Though  many  of  the  remarks  of  Lowth  on  this  very  difficult  sub- 
ject are  valuable,  and  merit  attentive  consideration ;  yet  I  very  much 
doubt  whether  they  can  all  be  sustained  by  an  accurate  investiga- 
tion of  particulars.  Michaelis  says,  and  not  without  reason,  "  in 
his,  quae  de  temporum  forma  grammatica  disputat  Noster,  nimis  ar- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XVI.  385 

gutus  fit  emphasium  captator  :  multo  sensurus  aliter,  si  de  gram- 
matica  Hebraica,  non  ex  Latina,  sed  ex  Arabica  iudicasset."  The 
Orientals,  generally,  allow  themselves  much  more  freedom  in  the 
use  of  tenses  than  the  writers  of  the  Western  world.  Consult 
Stuart's  Heb.  Gram.  (§§  501—504,  3d  ed.) ;  and  S.  de  Sacy, 
Gram.  Arab.  (P.  I.  Sec.  333  if.)  The  following  remarks  of  Rosen- 
mueller  are  also  deserving  of  attention. 

"  Res  facillime  expediri  videtur  observatione  lahnii  (Grammat. 
Ling.  Hebr.  p.  211.  edit,  tert.),  quemadmodum  Hebraeorum  Aoris- 
tus  primus,  quern  Praeteritum  appellare  solent,  sistat  rem  perfectam, 
iam  praesentem,  iam  praeteritam,  iam  futuram,  ita  Hebraeorum 
Aoristum  secundum,  Futurum  vulgo  vocant,  dici  de  re  infecta,  iam 
futura,  iam  praesenti,  iam  praeterita,  adeoque  hanc  flexionem  com- 
prehendere  nostrum  Futurum,  Praesens  et  Imperfectum :  id  quod 
commode  illustrat  eo  quod  refert  Varro,  de  Lingua  Lat.  L.  VIII.  p. 
152.  seq,  et  L.  IX.  p.  172.  T.  I.  edit.  Bipont,  suo  aevo  omnes  ver- 
borum  Latinorum  flexiones  relatas  fuisse  ad  duas,  alteram  rei  in- 
choatae  seu  infectae  (Futurum,  Praesens,  Imperfectum),  alteram 
rei  perfectae  (Praeteritum  exactum,  Praesens  exactum,  Futurum  ex- 
actum).  Pro  tribus  cuiusque  classis  flexionibus  Hebraei,  Arabes  et 
Aramaei  habent  unicam ;  pro  secunda  classe  Aoristum  primum, 
sive  Praeteritum,  et  pro  prima  classe  Aoristum  secundum,  sive  Fu- 
turuirL"  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XVI. 

[A.  p.  132.]     ISAIAH  XL.  12. 

Non  huius  loci  sunt,  quae  lesaias  versu  12  habet.  Nee  enim 
potentiam  Dei,  creationemque  rerum  omnium  describit,  sed  hanc 
promit  sententiam  :  non  magis  nos  mortali  ingenio  consilia  Dei, 
quaeque  praedicturus  iam  sit,  assequi  et  investigare  posse,  quam 
aquam  omnem  pugillis,  caelum  palmo  metiri,  etc.  MICHAELIS. 

[B.  p.  133.]    PSALM  cxxxix.  7—10. 

I  am  not  perfectly  satisfied  with  the  commonly  received  inter- 
pretation of  the  9th  verse  ;  as  expressive  of  the  continual  motion 
from  East  to  West,  and  the  velocity  of  the  motion  compared  with 
that  of  the  sun's  rays.  I  look  upon  the  two  lines  of  this  distich  to 
be  in  contrast  or  opposition  to  each  other,  and  not  that  the  latter  is 
49 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XVI. 


a  consequence  of  the  former  ;  and  this  I  think  is  so  apparent  from 
the  very  construction  of  the  sentences,  that  there  cannot  remain  a 
doubt  concerning  it  :  Thus  there  is  a  double  transition  spoken  of, 
towards  the  East,  and  again  towards  the  West ;  and  the  length  of 
the  flight,  and  not  the  velocity  of  the  motion,  is  the  object  of  ampli- 
fication. Thus  THEODORET  upon  this  passage,  "  He  calls  the  East 
the  Morning,  and  the  West,  the  extreme  parts  of  the  Sea :  to  height 
and  depth  he  opposes  breadth  and  length,  describing  and  evincing 
the  infinity  of  the  Divine  Being."  LOWTH. 

The  author  of  a  very  useful  collection  of  Jewish  commentaries, 
the  title  of  which  is  MidalJophe,  says,  this  phrase,  If  I  take  the 
wings  of  tin.  Morning,  should  be  understood  as  a  common  Oriental 
phrase  for  departure  or  flight  towards  the  East.  These  are  hi? 
words,  If  I  take  the  wings  of  the  Morning,  and  fly  with  them  ;  i.  e. 
If  I  go  to  the  extremity  of  the  East.  HUNT. 

Obstat  Lowthi  explication!,  facitque  pro  vocalibus  Hebraicis  ; 
quod  indecens  est,  hominem  implumem  dicere  :  si  alas  MEAS  attol- 
Icrem.  Aliud  est  :  si  alas,  quales  sunt  Aurorae,  attollerem. 

MlCHAELIS. 

Attulit  Huntius  prima  tantummodo  interpretis  Hebraici  verba, 
Lowthianae  explications  confirmandae  gratia.  Sed  erat  Scholion 
Hebraicum  integrum  apponendum,  ex  quo  apparet,  ilium  Lowtho 
minime  favere.  En  verba  Hebraea,  quae  statim  excipiunt  ilia  ab 

Huntio  allata :    Jim  IT  rp-ihao  -ifcan  s^Eti  ann  tr 
Kb  ins*  M-M  s-isnb  mt»tt  ^btf  SN  "wba  tobisn  spo 
TnNrn  *JT  ^n:n  mp»  bsn  ^  ^nbi  robb-     Et  extremum 

maris  est  occidens ;  et  quod  didt :  in  extremo  maris,  signijicare  vol- 
uit  ultimam  mundi  plagam,  quasi  diceret ;  si  earn  ab  oriente  ad  oc- 
casum  uno  momenta t  neque  tamen  possim  abire  in  locum,  quo  tu  non 
adsis ;  nam  unique  manus  tua  ducit  me,  et  dcxtera  tua  me  apprchen- 
dit.  In  qua  quidem  interpretatione,  quum  sensum  idoneum  fundat, 
et  nos  acquiescendum  arbitramur.  ROSENMUELLER. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XVII.  337 

NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XVII. 

[A.  p.  140.]     Pathos  of  the  Scriptures. 

Every  attentive  reader  of  the  sacred  writings,  who  has  a  taste 
for  excellence  of  the  kind  here  alluded  to,  and  has  observed  how 
deeply  our  best  poets,  Milton,  Pope,  and  even  Shakspeare,  are  in- 
debted to  the  Bible  for  some  of  their  loftiest  flights  of  sublimity  and 
most  exquisite  touches  of  pathos,  will  at  once  acknowledge  the 
justness  of  Lowth's  remarks  on  this  point.  And  if,  as  we  believe, 
the  Bible  was  really  given  by  inspiration  of  God,  if  it  was  in  fact 
dictated  by  the  Spirit  of  Him  who  formed  the  heart  of  man  and  is 
most  intimately  acquainted  with  all  its  intricacies  ;  why  should  it 
not  contain  the  most  perfect  delineation  of  the  human  passions  and 
character,  that  has  ever  been  given?  He  that  formed  the  eye,  shall 
he  not  see  ?  A  thorough  investigation  and  complete  exhibition  of 
the  excellence  of  the  Bible  in  this  respect,  is  a  desideratum  in  Sa- 
cred Literature.  Niemeyer,  in  his  C/iaractcristik  der  Bibel,  has 
accomplished  something  in  this  branch  of  biblical  study  ;  but  a  trea- 
tise is  needed  more  condensed,  and  more  directly  to  the  point. 
The  task  should  be  performed  by  one  in  whom  the  refined  taste  and 
intellectual  vigour  of  Lowth  are  united  with  the  nicest  discernment, 
and  most  extensive  philological  attainments.  Such  a  work  would 
be  an  invaluable  accession  to  the  science  of  human  nature  in  gen- 
eral ;  and  would  be  to  the  student  of  sacred  eloquence  a  help  in 
his  pursuit  as  much  superior  to  the  systems  of  rhetoric  now  extant, 
as  a  faithful  digest  of  the  moral  precepts  of  the  New  Testament 
would  be  to  all  human  systems  of  ethics,  S. 


[B.  p.  142.]  ISAIAH  LXIII.  G. 
.  Vertendum  potius  :  ad  tcrram  deturbavi  robur,  fortitudinem, 
eorum.  Eft^:  larchi  recte  explicat  D3in:£3  miSa  ,  fortitudinem 
victoriae,  potentiae,  eorum.  Nee  non  Kimchi  :  CC  ;pm  DpTft  for- 
titudinem et  potentiam  eorum.  Hieronymus  :  dctraxi  in  terram  vir- 
tutem  eorum.  Chaldaeus  : 


•• 

detect  ad  terram  infimam  occisos  fortium  eorum.     Syr  us  :  Z£—  x»|o 
et  deieci  in  terram  robur  eorum.     Alexandri- 


nus  Graecus  interpres  fisa  h.  1.   de  sanguine,  in  quo  vis  vitalis  est, 
accepit,  vertit  enim  :  ital  xafrjyayov  TO  alpa  <xi>iwv  fte  ynv. 

ROSENMUELLER. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XVIII, 


NOTES   ON   LECTURE   XVIII. 

[A.  p.  147.]     Jewish  opinions  on  Hebrew  poetry. 

ABARBANEL  distinguishes  three  species  of  canticles.  The  first  is 
the  rhythmical,  or  that  with  similar  endings ;  in  use  among  the  more 
modern  Hebrews  (who  learned  it  from  the  Arabic  writers)  but  which 
was  certainly  unknown  to  the  authors  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  The 
second  was  adapted  to  music,  and  sung  either  alone  or  accompanied 
with  instruments  :  such  are  the  songs  of  Moses,  of  Deborah,  of  Da- 
vid. The  third  species  consists  of  parables,  or  proverbs,  which  spe- 
cies, says  he,  (though  by  the  way  absurdly  enough,  as  is  not  uncom- 
mon with  the  Rabbinical  writers)  is  properly  denominated  *ivi7. 
From  this  class,  however,  he  excludes  the  parables  of  the  prophets, 
according  to  the  distinction  of  Maimonides  between  prophecy  and 
the  Holy  Spirit.  (See  More  Neboc.  ii.  45.)  He  says  they  are  not 
canticles,  because  they  are  not  the  work  of  the  prophet  himself,  but 
the  mere  effect  of  the  prophetic  inspiration.  Mantissa  Dissert,  ad 
Libr.  COSRI,  page  413. 

"  It  cannot  be  doubted  that  the  canticles  of  the  second  species 
were  possessed  of  a  certain  melody  or  metre,  which  through  the 
length  of  the  captivity,  is  obsolete."  ABARBANEL,  ib.  410. 

The  Song  of  Solomon  is  indeed  allowed  by  the  Jews  to  be  a 
poem  *  not  however  from  the  nature  of  the  composition,  or  from  its 
being  metrical,  but  merely  because  it  is  of  the  parabolic  kind  :  and 
therefore  it  is  referred  by  ABARBANEL  to  the  third  species  of  canticle. 
Whence  it  happens  that,  though  in  some  manuscript  copies  the  three 
metrical  books  are  written  in  a  versified  form,  the  Lamentations  and 
Song  of  Songs  are  differently  transcribed.  This  I  have  observed  to 
be  the  case  with  the  Vatican  MSS.  which  is  deservedly  accounted 
one  of  the  most  ancient,  its  date  being  the  year  DCCCCLXXIX  of  our 
Christian  aera.  The  same  is  observable  in  many  other  MSS.  as  I 
have  been  informed  by  my  learned  friend,  Dr.  KENNICOTT,  whose  He- 
brew Bible  with  the  various  readings  is  now  in  the  press,  and  al- 
ready in  great  forwardness.  Indeed,  it  is  natural  to  suppose,  that 
when  the  Jews  exhibit  certain  canticles,  and  even  whole  books,  in  a 
poetical  or  versified  order,  they  followed,  or  pretended  to  follow,  the 
true  nature  of  the  Hebrew  verse,  or  the  proper  distribution  of  the 
lines.  But  the  great  disagreement  between  them  in  this  respect  is 
a  proof  of  their  ignorance,  for  they  seldom  agree  with  one  another 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XVIII.  389 

in  the  termination  of  the  lines,  or  follow  any  determinate  rule  in  this 
matter.  The  distribution  of  the  verses  is  different  in  differem  cop- 
ies, as  may  be  immediately  observed  on  comparing  them.  In  the 
Song  of  Moses,  DEUT.  xxxii.  in  which  the  different  editions  agree 
better  than  in  any  other,  (and  indeed  there  was  but  little  room  for 
disagreement,  the  sense  always  pointing  out  of  itself  the  order  of  the 
sentences)  in  this,  notwithstanding,  the  Rabbins  have  contrived  to 
differ,  some  of  them  dividing  it  into  67,  and  some  into  70  verses  or 
lines.  See  Annot.  ad  Bib.  Heb.  Edit.  MICHAELIS,  Halae,  1720. 
Among  the  manuscript  copies  of  the  metrical  books  the  disagree- 
ment is  equally  manifest,  as  the  above  excellent  critic  proved  upon  a 
very  strict  examination,  undertaken  at  my  request.  In  a  very  fa- 
mous MSS.  which  I  saw  in  the  royal  library  at  Dresden,  I  remark- 
ed a  circumstance  that  clearly  demonstrates  the  perfect  ignorance 
and  absurdity  of  the  Jews  in  this  respect.  The  Chaldee  paraphrase 
was  intermingled  with  the  text  throughout,  in  such  a  manner,  that 
we  first  read  the  Hebrew,  and  then  the  Chaldee,  verse  by  verse  al- 
ternately :  in  the  metrical  books,  which  were  divided  into  lines  or 
verses,  the  text  and  version  were  so  confounded,  that  the  writer,  at- 
tending only  to  the  equality  of  his  lines,  perpetually  blended  the  He- 
brew and  Chaldee  together  in  such  a  manner,  that  where  the  one 
ended  the  other  was  resumed,  and  every  line  partook  of  both.  This 
is  a  very  elegant  copy,  and  probably  five  hundred  years  old.  The 
punctuation  is  evidently  of  a  more  recent  date ;  as  in  that  of  the 
Vatican  above-mentioned,  and  in  some  other  copies  still  older. 

LOWTH. 

[B.  p.  149.]     Schools  of  the  prophets. 

Of  the  existence  of  such  institutions  there  can  be  no  doubt, 
(compare  2  Kings  6:  1 — 7) ;  though  the  notices  of  them  in  the  sa- 
cred history  are  so  slight  and  transient,  that  little  can  be  gathered 
respecting  their  discipline  and  course  of  instruction,  additional  to 
what  our  author  has  stated  in  the  text.  For  some  very  interesting 
speculations  on  the  subject,  see  Herder,  Geist,  (Th.  II.  S.  284  ff.)r 
and  Eichhorn,  Einleitung,  (Th.  V.  S.  1  if.)  I.  C.  C.  Nachtigall  has 
given  the  subject  a  more  thorough  investigation  in  an  Essay,  ueber 
Samuels  Saetigervcrsammlung  oder  Prophetcnschule,  in  Henke's 
Magazinfuer  Exegcse,  Religionsphilosophie  und  Kirchengeschichte, 
(Th.  VI.  Fasc.  I.  S.  38).  S: 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIX. 


[C.  p.  150.]     Meaning  o/stett. 

This  word,  which  according  to  its  etymology  means  an  oracular 
saying,  loyiov,  is  no  more  peculiar  to  predictions  of  future  events, 
than  to  every  species  of  that  eloquence  which  is  supposed  to 
come  by  inspiration,  including  that  which  teaches  the  salutary 
principles  of  moral  conduct.  I  do  not  therefore  see  much  force  in 
this  argument  of  our  author  :  for  whatever  Lemuel  composed  under 
the  influence  of  the  Divine  Spirit  might  properly  be  called  Sii37:3 
whether  in  verse  or  not.  The  word  is  derived  from  Kfc)3  he  raised, 
he  produced,  he  spoke;  not  as  some  of  the  old  commentators  derive 
it,  from  Ki05,  he  received.  Though  a  divine  oracle  might,  I  confess, 
take  its  name  with  great  propriety  from  receiving,  as  does  the  Greek 
word  ArjMia  (so  the  Seventy  render  this  very  phrase)  which  means 
being  received  from  God.  But  the  use  of  the  word  in  2  Kings  ix.  25, 
jnilitates  against  this  derivation.  MICHAELIS. 


NOTES   ON   LECTURE   XIX. 

[A.  p.  156.]     Singing  by  alternate  choirs. 

Though  the  performance  of  the  hymns  by  two  alternate  CHOIRS, 
were  the  more  usual,  it  evidently  was  not  .the  only  mode  :  for,  as 
the  parallelism  of  sentences  in  the  Hebrew  poetry  is  not  restricted 
to  distichs,  but  admits  a  varied  form  of  iteration,  so  their  psalmody, 
though  usually  confined  to  two  alternate  choruses,  was  sometimes 
extended  to  more.  An  example  of  the  latter  kind  will  appear  in  Ps. 
cxxxv.  which  was  obviously  performed  by  THREE  different  CHOIRS, 
the  High  Priest  with  the  House  of  Aaron  constituting  ihejirst ;  the 
Levites  serving  in  the  temple,  the  second ;  and  the  congregation  of 
Israel,  the  third ;  all  having  their  distinct  parts,  and  all  at  stated 
intervals  uniting  in  full  chorus. 

The  High  Priest,  accompanied  by  the  rest  of  the  priesthood,  be- 
gan with  addressing  the  Levites  : 

Praise  ye  Jah  ! 
The  Levites  return  the  exhortation  to  the  priests  : 

Praise  ye  the  name  Jehovah  ! 
The  Priests  and  Levites  then  joining,  address  the  congregation  : 

Praise  him,  O  ye  servants  of  Jehovah  ! 
The  Congregation  address  the  Priests — 

Ye  that  stand  in  the  house  of  Jehovah  ! 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIX.  391 

And  the  Levites — 

In  the  courts  of  the  house  of  our  God  ! 

This  may  be  considered  as  the  first  passus  of  the  npoaGpa, 
which  the  Choir  of  Priests  resumes  by  a  second  exhortation  to  the 
Levites,  and  assigning  the  reason  for  their  praise  : 

Praise  ye  Jah,  for  Jehovah  is  good. 
The  Levites  then  exhort  the  Congregation  : 

Sing  praises  unto  his  name,  for  it  is  pleasant. 

And  the  congregation  joining  both,  the  three  choirs  unite  in  full 
chorus : 

For  Jah  hath  chosen  Jacob  unto  himself  : 
Israel  for  his  peculiar  treasure. 

The  nQoaopct  thus  concluding,  the  high  priest,  followed  by  his  band, 
commences  in  the  5th  verse  the  hymn.  The  6th  verse  belongs  to 
the  Levites,  and  the  7th  to  the  Congregation,  both  of  whom  having, 
in  them,  celebrated  Jehovah,  as  the  Creator  and  Governor  of  the 
world,  the  high  priest  descends  in  the  8th  verse  to  the  interpositions 
of  Jehovah  in  behalf  of  his  chosen  people  ;  beginning  with  the  mira- 
cle that  procured  their  deliverance  from  bondage.  The  Levites 
having  adverted  to  the  other  miracles  wrought  in  ^Egypt,  in  the  for- 
mer clause  of  the  9th  verse,  and  the  Congregation,  in  the  latter, 
pointed  out  Pharaoh  and  his  servants,  as  those  upon  whom  the 
judgements  of  Jehovah  were  inflicted,  the  high  priest,  etc.  proceeds 
in  the  10th  verse  to  remark  the  extension  of  similar  judgements  to 
other  nations  and  kings,  whose  names  and  kingdoms  the  Levites 
enumerate,  in  the  llth  verse,  whilst  the  Congregation,  in  the  12th, 
commemorate  the  blessings  which  had  thence  resulted  to  them.  At 
the  close  of  this  recitative,  in  the  first  clause  of  the  13th  verse,  fol- 
lows a  chorus  of  the  priests  : 

Thy  name,  O  Jehovah  !  endure th  for  ever  ! 

And  in  the  second,  another  of  the  Levites : 

Thy  memorial,  O  Jehovah  !  throughout  all  generations. 

The  Congregation  then  striking  in  with  Priests  and  Levites,  all 
unite  in  full  chorus,  as  before  : 

For  Jehovah  will  judge  his  people  : 

And  will  repent  him  concerning  his  servants. 

This  chorus  may  be  considered  as  closing  the  first  part  of  the 
hymn,  the  concluding  clause  of  which,  adverting  to  the  frequent 
backslidings  of  the  Jewish  nation,  notwithstanding  the  blessings 
both  ordinary  and  extraordinary  which  Jehovah  had  conferred  upon 
them,  and  the  prosperity  they  enjoyed  in  the  land  promised  to  their 


392  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIX. 


forefathers,  notwithstanding  their  turning  aside  to  the  idolatry  of  the 
nations  that  had  been  cut  off  from  before  them,  the  choir  of  priests 
(referring  back  to  the  5th  verse)  as  if  assured  that  Israel  could  re- 
volt no  more,  breaks  out  in  a  second  recitative,  expressive  at  once  of 
exultation  and  contempt : 

The  idols  of  the  heathen,  silver  and  gold,  etc. 
To  this  the  Levites  add  in  the  same  indignant  strain : 

They  have  mouths,  but  they  speak  not,  etc. 
The  Congregation  subjoin  : 

They  have  ears,  but  they  hear  not,  etc. 
And  the  three  choirs  again  uniting  : 

They  that  make  them  are  like  unto  them  : 
Every  one  that  trusteth  in  them. 

With  this  exquisite  contrast  between  the  gods  in  whom  the  hea- 
then confided,  and  Jehovah  the  rock  of  their  salvation — the  former 
unable  to  aid  or  hear  their  votaries,  and  the  latter  loading  benefits  on 
his  own — the  second  part  of  the  hymn  is  concluded,  and  the  high 
priest  with  his  choir,  by  a  graceful  transition,  renews  his  exhortation 
as  at  first ;  but  now  addressing  the  Congregation  : 

Bless  Jehovah,  O  house  of  Israel ! 
To  which  the  Congregation  reply : 

Bless  Jehovah,  O  house  of  Aaron  ! 
The  priests,  in  like  manner,  exhorting  the  Levites : 

Bless  Jehovah,  O  house  of  Levi ! 
To  whom  they  in  their  turn  rejoin  : 

Ye  that  fear  Jehovah,  bless  Jehovah  ! 
All  then  uniting : 

Blessed  be  Jehovah  out  of  Sion  ! 
Who  dwelleth  in  Jerusalem  ! 

The  whole  is  closed  by  each  choir  in  full  chorus,  exhorting  the  oth- 
er two : 

Praise  ye  Jah  ! 

From  this  analysis  it  is  evident,  that  the  Hebrew  hymn  is  a 
composition  not  less  regular  than  the  Grecian  ode,  and  of  a  much 
more  varied  nature  than  the  professor  had  led  his  audience  to  sup- 
pose. 

The  whole  Psalm,  according  to  the  above  division,  may  be  thus 
exhibited : 

TIPOA2MA,  or  PRELUDE.     Part  I. 

High  Priest  and  Priests,  to  the  Levites ; 
Praise  ye  Jah ! 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIX. 


Levites,  to  the  Priests  : 

Praise  ye  the  name  of  Jehovah  ! 
Priests  and  Levites,  to  the  Congregation  : 

Praise  him,  O  ye  servants  of  Jehovah  1 
The  Congregation,  to  the  Priests  : 

Ye  that  stand  in  the  house  of  Jehovah  ! 
The  Congregation,  to  the  Levites  : 

In  the  courts  of  the  house  of  our  God  ! 

UPOA2MA.    2. 

Priests,  to  the  Levites  : 

Praise  ye  Jah,  for  Jehovah  is  good  ! 
Levites,  to  the  Congregation  : 

Sing  praises  unto  his  name,  for  it  is  pleasant, 
Congregation,  joining  both  Priests  and  Levites : 

For  Jah  hath  chosen  Jacob  unto  himself, 

Israel  for  his  peculiar  treasure. 

HYMN. 

High  Priest,  followed  by  the  Priests : 

For  I  know  that  Jehovah  is  great, 

Even  our  Lord  above  all  gods. 
Levites : 

Whatsoever  Jehovah  pleased, 

He  did  in  heaven,  and  in  earth, 

In  the  seas,  and  in  deep  places  : 
Congregation : 

He  causeth  the  vapours  to  rise  from  the  ends  of  the  earth, 

He  maketh  lightnings  for  the  rain  : 

He  bringeth  the  wind  out  of  his  treasuries. 
High  Priest,  accompanied  by  the  Priests  : 

Who  smote  the  first-born  of  JEgypt, 

Both  of  man,  of  beast. 
Levites  : 

Sent  tokens  and  wonders  into  the  midst  of  thee,  O 
Congregation  : 

Upon  Pharaoh  and  upon  all  his  servants. 
High  Priest  and  Priests  : 

Who  smote  great  nations,  and  slew  mighty  kings : 
Levites  : 

Sihon,  king  of  the  Amorites, 

And  Og,  king  of  Basan, 

And  all  the  kingdoms  of  Canaan. 
50 


394 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XIX. 


Congregation  : 

And  he  gave  their  land  an  heritage, 

An  heritage  with  Israel  his  people. 
Priests : 

Thy  name,  O  Jehovah,  endureth  for  ever. 
Levites : 

Thy  memorial,  O  Jehovah,  throughout  all  generations. 
Priests,  Levites,  and  Congregation,  in  full  chorus : 

For  Jehovah  will  judge  his  people  ; 

And  will  repent  him  concerning  his  servants. 

II. 

High  Priest,  accompanied  by  the  Priests : 

The  idols  of  the  heathen — silver  and  gold  ! 
The  work  of  mortal  hands. 


Levites : 


Congregation 


They  have  mouths,  but  they  speak  not; 
Eyes  have  they,  but  they  see  not. 


They  have  ears,  but  they  hear  not  : 
Neither  is  there  any  truth  in  their  mouths. 
Priests,  Levites,  and  Congregation,  in  full  chorus  : 

They  that  make  them  are  like  unto  them  ; 
Every  one  that  trusteth  in  them. 


High  Priest  and  Priests,  to  the  Congregation  : 

Bless  Jehovah,  O  house  of  Israel  ! 
Congregation,  to  the  High  Priest  and  Priests  : 

Bless  Jehovah,  O  house  of  Aaron  ! 
High  Priest  and  Priests,  to  the  Levites  : 

Bless  Jehovah,  O  house  of  Levi  ! 
Levites,  to  High  Priest  and  Priests  : 

Ye  that  fear  Jehovah,  bless  Jehovah  ! 
Priests,  Levites,  and  Congregation,  in  full  chorus  : 

Blessed  be  Jehovah  out  of  Sion, 

Who  dwelleth  in  Jerusalem  ! 
Full  chorus,  continuing  each  division  to  both  the  rest  : 

Praise  ye  Jah  ! 

The  praising  the  name  JEHOVAH,  so  often  mentioned  in  Scrip- 
ture, arises  from  the  answer  to  the  question  of  Moses,  EXOD.  iii.  13. 

HENLEY. 
(Compare  also  Herder,  Geist,  Th.  II.  S.  126  ff.) 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XX.  395 

[B.  p.  158.]     HOSEA  xi.  9. 

There  is  hardly  any  thing  in  which  translators  have  differed 
more  than  in  the  explanation  of  this  line  ;  which  is  the  more  extra- 
ordinary when  we  consider  that  the  words  themselves  are  so  well 
known,  and  the  structure  of  the  period  so  plain  and  evident.  JE- 
ROME is  almost  singular  in  his  explanation.  Comm.  in  loc.  "  I  am 
not  one  of  those  who  inhabit  cities ;  who  live  according  to  human 
laws  ;  who  think  cruelty  justice."  CASTALIO  follows  JEROME. 
There  is  in  fact  in  the  latter  member  of  the  sentence  -r$3  N12J*  Kb 
a  parallelism  and  synonyme  to  M^tf  Kb  in  the  former.  The  future 
fcPSN  has  a  frequentative  power  (see  Ps.  xxii.  3  and  8,)  "  I  am  not 
accustomed  to  enter  a  city  ;  I  am  not  an  inhabitant  of  a  city."  For 
there  is  a  beautiful  opposition  of  the  different  parts  ;  "  I  am  God, 
and  not  man  ;"  this  is  amplified  in  the  next  line,  and  the  antithesis 
a  little  varied.  "  I  am  thy  God,  inhabiting  with  thee,  but  in  a  pecu- 
liar and  extraordinary  manner,  not  in  the  manner  of  men."  Noth- 
ing I  think  can  be  plainer  or  more  elegant  than  this.  LOWTH. 

[C.  p.  166.]     Use  of  parallelism  in  interpretation. 

A  more  full  account  of  the  Hebrew  parallelism  may  be  found  in 
Dr.  Lowth's  Preliminary  Dissertation  to  Isaiah,  which  the  reader 
will  do  well  to  consult.  A  very  able  tract  on  the  use  of  parallelism 
in  interpretation  has  been  published  by  Dr.  Schleusner,  entitled  : 
Dissertatio  Philologica  de  Parallelismo  Sententiarum  Egregio  Sub- 
sidio  Interpretation^  Grammaticae  Vet.  Test.  Some  useful  re- 
marks on  the  same  subject  may  be  found  in  Meyer,  Hermenentik  des 
alten  Testaments,  (Th.  II.  SS.  352—362).  This  investigation, 
however,  belongs  rather  to  a  Treatise  on  Hcrmeneutics  than  to  Lec- 
tures on  Poetry  ;  and  for  {his  reason  I  omit  the  long,  and  in  some 
respects  valuable,  note  of  Michaelis  de  usu  parallclismi  membrorum 
hermeneutico.  The  student  who  wishes  for  information  on  this 
point,  will  find  it  by  consulting  the  works  mentioned  above.  S. 


NOTES  ON   LECTURE  XX. 

[A.  p.  168.]     Jeicish  notions  of  prophecy. 

Our  author  in  this  place  alludes  to  the  Rabbinical  notions  con- 
cerning inspiration,  which  are  explained  more  at  large  by  BASNAGE. 
"  They  distinguish,"  says  that  author,  "  eleven  degrees  of  prophecy. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XX. 


They  reckon  among  inspired  men  those  who  felt  some  inward  emo- 
tions, urging  them  to  perform  extraordinary  actions,  as  Samson, 
Those  who  composed  hymns  and  psalms,  because  they  believed 
themselves  inspired  with  God's  Spirit,  were  accounted  so  many  pro- 
phets. However,  these  prophets  are  distinguished  from  the  follow- 
ing orders  :  1.  When  Zechariah  says,  the  word  of  the  Lord  came 
unto  me.  2.  Samuel  heard  a  voice,  but  did  not  see  who  spoke. 
3.  When  a  man  speaks  in  a  dream  with  a  prophet,  as  it  happened  to 
Ezekiel,  to  whom  a  man  cried,  Son  of  man.  4.  Angels  spoke  often 
in  dreams.  5.  It  was  sometimes  thought,  that  God  himself  spoke  in 
a  dream.  6.  Some  mystical  objects  were  discovered.  7.  An  audi- 
ble voice  was  heard  from  the  midst  of  these  objects.  8.  A  man  is 
seen  speaking,  as  it  happened  to  Abraham  under  the  oak  of  Mamre, 
which  however  was  a  vision.  9.  Lastly,  an  angel  is  perceived  speak- 
ing. Thus  Abraham  heard  one,  when  he  was  binding  Isaac  upon 
the  altar  to  sacrifice  him  :  but  that  was  also  a  vision."  Hist,  of  the 
Jews,  B.  IV.  ch.  xviii.  §11.  GREGORY. 

[B.  p.  168.]     Style  of  Daniel  unpoctical. 

We  may  add  [to  the  causes  of  this  mentioned  by  Lowth]  the  de- 
cline of  the  Hebrew  language,  which  in  the  Babylonish  captivity  lost 
all  its  grace  and  elegance.  Nor  among  so  many  evils  which  befell 
their  nation,  is  it  surprising  that  they  should  have  neither  leisure  nor 
spirit  for  the  cultivation  of  the  fine  arts.  Besides,  when  a  language 
is  confined  chiefly  to  the  lowest  of  the  people,  it  is  hardly  to  be  ex- 
pected that  it  should  produce  any  poets  worthy  of  the  name.  Let 
any  man  compare  what  was  written  in  Hebrew  before  and  after  the 
Babylonish  exile,  and  I  apprehend  he  will  perceive  no  less  evident 
marks  of  decay  and  ruin  than  in  the  Latin  language.  Wherefore  it 
appears  to  me  very  improbable,  that  any  psalms,  which  breathe  a 
truly  sublime  and  poetical  spirit,  were  composed  after  the  return 
from  Babylon,  excepting  perhaps  that  elegant  piece  of  poetry  the 
cxxxviith.  Certainly  nothing  can  be  more  absurd  than  the  error, 
into  which  some  commentators  have  fallen,  in  attributing  some  of 
the  sublimest  of  the  psalms  to  Ezra,  than  whose  style  nothing  can 
be  meaner  or  more  ungraceful.  Indeed  I  have  myself  some  doubts 
concerning  the  cxxxviith,  which  I  am  more  inclined  to  attribute  to 
Jeremiah,  or  some  contemporary  of  his ;  and  I  think  the  taste  and 
spirit  of  the  bard,  who  sung  so  sweetly  elsewhere  the  miseries  of  hie! 
nation_,  may  very  plainly  be  discerned  in  it.  MICHAELIP. 


NOTES  ClN  LECTURE  XX.  397 

[C.  p.  169.]      Design  of  prophecy. 

One  of  the  most  important  ends  of  prophecy,  as  it  appears  to  me, 
is,  that  the  predictions,  being  gradually  accomplished  from  age  to 
age,  may  remain  an  attestation  of  the  divine  inspiration  of  the  sa- 
cred writers,  after  the  power  of  working  miracles  has  ceased.  In 
order  to  accomplish  this  purpose,  the  predictions  must  be  sufficient- 
ly circumstantial  and  definite  to  afford  satisfactory  evidence  that 
they  were  originally  designed  to  be  applicable  to  this  or  that  parti- 
cular event,  and  to  no  other. 

Concerning  the  next  feature  of  prophecy,  which  our  author  in- 
troduces, namely,  its  comprehending  at  a  single  glance  a  variety  of 
events,  etc.,  a  valuable  dissertation  by  Velthusen,  entitled  :  Program- 
ma  de  optica  Rerum  futurarum  Descriptione  ad  illustrandum  Lo- 
cum Jes.  LXXIII.  1 — 6,  may  be  found  in  the  Commcntationes 
Theologicae,  published  by  Velthusen,  Kuinoel,  and  Rupert,  (Vol. 
VI.  p.  75.  ff.).  S. 

[D.  p.  174.]     ISAIAH  xxxiv.  xxxv. 

In  this  prophecy  Edom  is  particularly  marked  out  as  an  object 
of  the  Divine  vengeance.  The  principal  provocation  of  Edom  was 
their  insulting  the  Jews  in  their  distress,  and  joining  against  them 
with  their  enemies  the  Chaldeans  :  See  Amos  i.  11.  Ezek.  xxv.  12. 
xxxv.  15.  Ps.  cxxxvii.  7.  Accordingly  the  Edomites  were,  together 
with  the  rest  of  the  neighbouring  nations,  ravaged  and  laid  waste  by 
Nebuchadnezzar  :  See  Jer.  xxx.  15 — 26.  Mai.  i.  2,  3,  4  ;  and  see 
MARSHAM,  Can.  Chron.  Saec.  xviii.,  who  calls  this  the  age  of  the  de- 
struction of  cities.  LOWTH. 

The  course  of  thought  is  as  follows  :  Jehovah  is  angry  with  all 
the  heathen  nations,  and  devotes  them  to  destruction,  (xxxiv.  1 — 4). 
la-  the  first  place,  he  sends  his  sword  upon  Edom,  and  causes  a  mas- 
sacre in  Bozra,  in  order  to  avenge  Zion  upon  her,  (vs.  5 — 8). 
The  whole  region  is  given  to  the  flames,  (vs.  9,  10).  Nothing  but 
beasts  of  the  wilderness  and  goblins  shall  dwell  there  forever,  (vs. 
11—17). 

The  oppressed  nation  of  Israel  rejoice  in  this  destruction  of  their 
enemies,  and  see  in  it  a  proof  of  the  power  of  Jehovah,  (xxxv.  1,  2). 
Comforted  and  happy,  they  now  have  opportunity  to  return  to  their 
native  land,  (vs.  3 — 6) ;  for  Jehovah  himself  will  lead  them  through 
the  wilderness,  make  it  fruitful,  supply  it  with  water,  and  free  it 


398  NOTES  ON    LECTURE  XXI. 


from  wild  beasts,  (vs.  6—9).     Redeemed  and  shouting  for  joy  they 
will  march  to  Jerusalem,  (v.  10).  GESENIUS. 

The  general  view  of  this  noble  poem,  which  Lowth  has  given  in 
the  text,  is  truly  admirable ;  but  his  exegesis  of  some  of  the  parts  is, 
to  say  the  least,  very  questionable.  The  Bishop  gives  way  too 
much  to  his  old  propensity  to  emend  the  text  where  he  finds  a  dif- 
ficulty. Instead  of  entering  into  a  minute  examination  here,  I 
would  refer  the  reader  to  his  Hebrew  Bible  and  Lexicon,  and  to  the 
Commentaries  of  Rosenmueller  or  Gesenius. — One  phrase,  however, 
as  it  is  quite  an  unusual  one,  may  require  some  explanation. 
xxxiv.  5.  ^2^fi  tis3D^  nn5) ") ,  literally,  as  Lowth  renders  it,  in- 
ebriatus  cst  in  coclis  gladius  meus.  The  sense  is,  that  the  sword  of 
Jehovah  rushes  furiously  from  heaven  upon  his  enemies,  like  a  war- 
rior who  is  excited  by  strong-  drink.  (Compare  3  Mace.  5:  2).  It 
is  a  very  common  figure  with  the  Oriental  writers  to  represent  the 
sword  of  a  warrior  as  drinking,  and  being  drunk  with  the  blood  of 
his  enemies.  So  Abulfaragius,  The  Turks  rushed  in,  and  their  fu- 
rious sword  drank  the  blood  of  old  men  and  children.  (See  Gesen- 
ius  in  loc.  Compare  Deut.  32:  42.  Jer.  46:  10,  et  al.).  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXI. 

[A.  p.  178.]     Character  of  Jeremiah. 

Jerome  probably  adopted  this  opinion  from  his  masters,  the  Jews. 
Of  the  more  modern  Rabbins,  ABARBANEL  (Praef.  in  Jer.)  com- 
plains grievously  of  the  grammatical  ignorance  of  the  prophet,  and 
his  frequent  solecisms ;  which  he  says  Ezra  corrected  by  the  Keri 
or  marginal  notes,  for  he  remarks  that  they  occur  more  frequently 
in  him  than  elsewhere.  Absurd  and  ridiculous !  to  attribute  the 
errors  of  transcribers,  which  occur  in  almost  every  part  of  the  He- 
brew text,  to  the  sacred  writers  themselves ;  the  greater  part  of 
these  errors  he  would  indeed  have  found  scarcely  to  exist,  if  he  had 
consulted  the  more  correct  copies,  which  remain  even  at  this  day  : 
for  among  these  very  marginal  readings,  there  are  but  few,  which, 
in  the  more  ancient  MSS.  are  not  found  in  the  text.  WALTON  has 
long  since  given  a  remarkable  example  of  this  kind  (Prolegom.  iv. 
12).  The  collations  of  Dr.  KENNICOTT  will  afford  many  more. 

LOWTH. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXI.  399 

[B.  p.  173.]     Character  of  Ezekicl 

I  must  confess  that  I  feel  not  perfectly  satisfied  with  myself, 
when  in  a  matter  entirely  dependent  upon  taste,  I  can  by  no  means 
bring  myself  to  agree  with  our  author.  So  far  from  esteeming  Eze- 
kiel  equal  to  Isaiah  in  sublimity,  I  am  inclined  rather  to  think,  that 
he  displays  more  art  and  luxuriance  in  amplifying  and  decorating 
his  subject  than  is  consistent  with  the  poetical  fervour,  or  indeed 
with  true  sublimity.  He  is  in  general  an  imitator,  and  yet  he  has 
the  art  of  giving  an  air  of  novelty  and  ingenuity,  but  not  of  gran- 
deur and  sublimity,  to  all  his  composition.  The  imagery  which  is 
familiar  to  the  Hebrew  poetry  he  constantly  makes  use  of,  and  those 
figures  which  were  invented  by  others,  but  were  only  glanced  at,  or 
partially  displayed  by  those  who  first  used  them,  he  dwells  upon,  and 
depicts  with  such  accuracy  and  copiousness,  that  he  leaves  nothing 
to  add  to  them,  nothing  to  be  supplied  by  the  reader's  imagination. 
On  this  score  his  ingenuity  is  to  be  commended,  and  he  is  therefore 
of  use  to  his  readers,  because  he  enables  them  better  to  understand 
the  ancient  poets  ;  but  he  certainly  does  not  strike  with  admiration, 
or  display  any  trait  of  sublimity. 

Of  this  I  will  propose  only  one  example  :  many  of  the  same  kind 
may  be  found  in  looking  over  the  writings  of  this  prophet.  In  de- 
scribing a  great  slaughter,  it  is  very  common  in  the  best  poets  to  in- 
troduce a  slight  allusion  to  birds  of  prey.  Thus  in  the  ILIAD  : 


"  Whose  limbs,  unburied  on  the  naked  shore, 
"  Devouring  dogs  and  hungry  vultures  tore." 

Thus,  it  is  the  language  of  boasting  in  the  historical  part  of  Script- 
ure —  "  I  will  give  thy  flesh  unto  the  fowls  of  the  air,  and  unto  the 
beasts  of  the  field."  1  Sam.  xvii.  44.  Asaph  also  in  Psalm  Ixxviii. 
48.  "  He  gave  their  cattle  to  the  hail,  and  their  flocks  to  the  birds.'' 
Moses  is  still  more  sublime,  Deut.  xxxii.  23,  24. 

"  I  will  spend  mine  arrows  upon  them. 

"  They  shall  be  eaten  up  with  hunger,  a  prey  unto  birds, 

"  And  to  bitter  destruction  ! 

"  I  will  also  send  the  teeth  of  beasts  upon  them, 

"  With  the  poison  of  the  reptiles  of  the  earth." 

But  HABAKKUK  is  more  excellent  than  either  of  the  former,  chap,  iii, 
5,  speaking  of  the  victory  of  JEHOVAH  over  his  enemies  : 

"  Before  him  went  the  pestilence, 

"  And  his  footsteos  were  traced  by  the  birds." 


400  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXf. 

Doubtless,  the  birds  of  prey.     ISAIAH  is  somewhat   more  copious, 
chap,  xxxiv.  6,  7. 

'  For  JEHOVAH  celebrateth  a  sacrifice  in  Botzra, 

'  And  a  great  slaughter  in  the  land  of  Edom. 

'  And  the  wild  goats  shall  fall  down  with  them  ; 

'  And  the  bullocks,  together  with  the  bulls  : 

'  And  their  own  land  shall  be  drunken  with  their  blood, 

'  And  their  dust  shall  be  enriched  with  fat." 

These  and  other  images  Ezekiel  has  adopted,  and  has  studiously 
amplified  with  singular  ingenuity  ;  and  by  exhausting  all  the  image- 
ry applicable  to  the  subject,  has  in  a  manner  made  them  his  own. 
In  the  first  prediction  of  the  slaughter  of  Magog,  the  whole  chapter 
consists  of  a  most  magnificent  amplification  of  all  the  circumstances 
and  apparatus  of  war,  so  that  scarcely  any  part  of  the  subject  is  left 
untouched ;  he  adds  afterwards  in  a  bold  and  unusual  style — "  Thus, 
Son  of  man,  saith  JEHOVAH,  speak  unto  every  feathered  fowl,  and 
to  every  beast  of  the  field :  assemble  yourselves  and  come,  gather 
yourselves  on  every  side  to  the  banquet,  which  I  prepare  for  you,  a 
great  banquet  on  the  mountains  of  Israel.  Ye  shall  eat  flesh,  and  ye 
shall  drink  blood ;  ye  shall  eat  the  flesh  of  the  mighty,  and  drink 
the  blood  of  the  princes  of  the  earth,  of  rams,  of  lambs,  and  of  goats, 
of  bullocks,  all  of  them  fallings  of  Bashan.  Ye  shall  eat  fat  till  ye 
be  satiated,  and  drink  blood  till  ye  be  drunken,  in  the  banquet  which 
I  have  prepared  for  you.  Ye  shall  be  filled  at  my  table  with  horses 
and  chariots,  with  mighty  men,  and  with  men  of  valour,  saith  the 
Lord  JEHOVAH."  Ezek.  xxxviii.  17 — 20.  In  this  I  seem  to  read  a 
poet,  who  is  unwilling  to  omit  any  thing  of  the  figurative  kind  which 
presents  itself  to  his  mind,  and  would  think  his  poem  deficient,  if 
he  did  not  adorn  it  with  every  probable  fiction  which  could  be  ad- 
ded :  and  for  this  very  reason  I  cannot  help  placing  him  rather  in 
the  middle  than  superior  class.  Observe  how  the  author  of  the 
Apocalypse,  who  is  in  general  an  imitator,  but  endued  with  a  sub- 
limer  genius,  and  in  whose  prose  all  the  splendour  of  poetry  may  be 
discerned,  has  conducted  these  sentiments  of  Ezekiel :  "  I  saw  an 
angel  standing  in  the  sun ;  and  he  cried  with  a  loud  voice  unto  the 
fowls  that  fly  in  the  midst  of  heaven,  Come  and  gather  yourselves  to- 
gether unto  the  supper  of  the  great  God  ;  that  ye  may  eat  of  the 
flesh  of  kings,  and  of  captains,  and  the  flesh  of  mighty  men,  and  the 
flesh  of  horses,  and  of  them  that  sit  upon  them,  and  the  flesh  of  all 
men,  both  free  and  bond,  both  small  and  great."  Rev^xix.  17,  18. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXI.  401 

But  Ezekiel  goes  yet  further,  so  delighted  is  he  with  this  image, 
so  intent  is  he  upon  the  by-paths  of  the  Muses,  that  he  gives  even 
the  trees,  taking  them  for  empires,  to  the  birds ;  and  their  shades  or 
ghosts  he  consigns  to  the  infernal  regions.  Thus  chap.  xxxi.  13 — 15. 
"  Upon  his  trunk  shall  all  the  fowls  of  heaven  remain,  and  all  the 
beasts  of  the  field  shall  be  upon  his  branches.  To  the  end  that  none  of 
all  the  trees  by  the  waters  shall  exalt  themselves  for  their  height,  nor 
shoot  up  their  top  among  the  thick  boughs  ;  neither  their  trees  stand 
up  in  their  height,  all  that  drink  water  :  for  they  are  all  delivered 
unto  death,  to  the  nether  parts  of  the  earth  in  the  midst  of  the  chil- 
dren of  men,  with  them  that  go  down  to  the  pit,  etc."  In  this  we 
find  novelty  and  variety,  great  fertility  of  genius,  but  no  sublimity. 

I  had  almost  forgotten  to  mention,  that  Ezekiel  lived  at  a  period 
when  the  Hebrew  language  was  visibly  on  the  decline.  And  when 
we  compare  him  with  the  Latin  poets  who  succeeded  the  Augustan 
age,  we  may  find  some  resemblance  in  the  style,  something  that  in- 
dicates the  old  age  of  poetry.  MICHAELIS. 

[C.  p.  180.]     Character  of  Habakkuk. 

On  a  very  accurate  perusal  of  Habakkuk,  I  find  him  a  great  im- 
itator of  former  poets,  but  with  some  new  additions  of  his  own  ;  not 
however  in  the  manner  of  Ezekiel,  but  with  much  greater  brevity, 
and  with  no  common  degree  of  sublimity.  Ezekiel,  for  the  most 
part,  through  his  extreme  copiousness,  flags  behind  those  whom  he 
imitates ;  Habakkuk  either  rises  superior,  or  at  least  keeps  on  an 
equality  with  them.  MICHAELIS. 

[D.  p.  181.]     Opinion  of  the  Greeks  on  their  prophetic  poetry. 

"  I  find,  too,  that  some  of  the  oracles  of  Apollo  have  not  escaped 
ridicule  in  this  respect,  though  the  obscurity  of  prophecy  renders 
them  in  general  so  difficult  to  decipher,  that  the  hearers  have  no 
leisure  to  bestow  on  an  examination  of  the  metre."  Merc,  in  Lu- 
CIAN'S  Dial,  entitled  Jupiter  TragaBdus. 

"  A  response  from  an  oracle  in  verse  having  been  recited  by  one 
of  the  company — I  have  often  wondered  (said  Diogenianus)  at  the 
meanness  and  imperfection  of  the  verses  which  conveyed  the  oracu- 
lar responses ;  especially  considering  that  Apollo  is  the  president  of 
the  Muses,  and,  one  should  imagine,  would  no  less  interest  himself 
in  the  style  of  his  own  predictions,  than  in  the  harmony  of  odes  and 
other  poetry  :  besides,  that  he  certainly  must  be  superior  to  Hprner 
51 


402  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXI. 

and  Hesiod  in  poetic  taste  and  ability.  Notwithstanding  this,  we 
find  many  of  the  oracles,  both  as  to  style  and  metre,  deficient  in 
prosody,  and  in  every  species  of  poetical  merit."  PLUTARCH,  Ing. 
why  the  Pythia  now  ceases  to  deliver  her  oracles  in  verse  ? 

LOWTH. 

Just  as  the  Bishop's  observation  is,  concerning  the  prophetic  ora- 
cles of  the  Greeks,  yet  whoever  will  be  at  the  trouble  of  considering 
the  predictions  of  Cassandra,  in  the  Agamemnon  of  ^Eschylus,  may 
easily  perceive  a  peculiarity  of  imagery  and  style  that  would  throw 
some  light  on  the  subject  itself,  as  well  as  serve  to  illustrate  the  pro- 
phetic phraseology  of  the  Hebrews.  HENLEY. 

The  prophecy  of  the  Sibyl  in  the  sixth  ^Eneid  might  also  be  re- 
ferred to  as  an  example ;  in  it  the  prophetic  ecstacy  is  so  admirably 
expressed,  that  the  art  and  imitative  powers  of  Virgil  may  contribute 
not  a  little  to  enable  us  to  understand  the  language  and  manner  of 
true  prophecy.  MICHAELIS. 

[E.  p.  183.]     Fourth  Eclogue  of  Virgil. 

The  learned  are  generally  agreed  that  the  Eclogue  in  question 
cannot  relate  to  Saloninus,  a  son  of  Pollio,  born  after  the  capture  of 
Salona,  who  is  spoken  of  by  Servius,  if  any  such  person  ever  existed  ; 
since  it  appears  from  Dion  and  Appian,  that  the  expedition  of  Pol- 
lio to  Illyricum  took  place  in  the  following  year.  Some  have  con- 
jectured, that  this  poem  relates  to  C.  Asinius  Gallus,  a  son  of  the 
same  person,  and  indeed  with  much  greater  appearance  of  probabili- 
ty ;  since  Asconius  Pedianus  reports,  that  he  had  heard  from  Gallus 
himself,  that  this  poem  was  composed  in  honour  of  him.  See  SERV. 
ad  Eclog.  iv.  11.  But  Servius  himself  affirms,  that  Gallus  was 
born  in  the  preceding  year,  while  Pollio  was  consul  elect ;  and  al- 
though such  a  boast  might  very  well  agree  with  the  vanity  of  a  man, 
who,  Augustus  himself  said,  would  be  desirous  of  acquiring  the 
sovereignty  after  his  death,  though  unequal  to  it ;  (TACIT.  An.  i.  13), 
yet  it  is  scarcely  probable,  that  any  poet,  in  common  prudence,  would 
predict  any  thing  so  magnificent  of  a  son  of  Pollio.  Further,  why 
has  he  foretold  this  divine  son  to  him  as  a  consul  only,  and  not  as  a 
father  ?  which  would  have  reflected  much  more  honour  on  Pollio. 
Many,  from  these  difficulties,  have  attributed  the  poet's  compliment 
to  Caesar  Octavius  and  to  some  child  born  in  his  family,  as  the  cer- 
tain heir  to  the  empire.  Julia,  Marcellus,  and  Drusus,  have  all  been 
mentioned.  As  to  Drusus,  neither  his  age  nor  person  correspond  to 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXI.  403 

the  prediction  ;  and  though  the  age  of  Marcellus  might  suit  it  bet- 
ter, yet  the  personal  disagreement  is  the  same.  With  respect  to  Ju- 
lia, the  daughter  of  Octavius,  there  can  be  no  objection  upon  either 
account,  if  the  Eclogue  were  written  during  the  pregnancy  of  Scri- 
bonia,  and  that  it  was  written  before  her  delivery,  is  credible  from 
the  invocation  it  contains  to  Lucina  :  "  O,  chaste  Lucina,  aid  !" — 
But  let  it  be  remembered  by  those  who  adopt  any  of  these  hypothe- 
ses, who,  and  in  what  station,  Octavius  then  was ;  not  emperor  and 
Augustus,  the  sovereign  lord  of  the  whole  Roman  empire,  all  which 
dignities  became  his  only  after  the  battle  of  Actium,  nine  years  pos- 
terior to  the  date  of  this  Eclogue  ;  but  a  triumvir,  equal  only  in  au- 
thority with  Antony  at  least,  not  to  speak  of  Lepidus.  How  then 
could  the  poet  presume  to  predict  to  any  son  of  Octavius,  if  at  that 
time  any  son  had  been  born  to  him,  the  succession  to  the  empire  1 
But,  if  we  should  even  grant,  what  is  really  true,  that  no  person 
more  worthy  or  more  proper  could  be  found,  or  to  whom  these  pre- 
dictions would  be  better  suited,  than  to  some  of  the  descendants  of 
Octavius ;  and  if  even  we  should  suppose  that  a  son  of  his  was  at 
that  time  in  being,  still  there  is  one  argument  sufficient  to  overturn 
the  whole,  and  that  is,  that  the  Eclogue  is  inscribed  to  Pollio ;  for 
at  that  time,  and  even  for  some  time  after,  Pollio  was  of  the  party  of 
Antony,  and  in  opposition  to  Octavius.  Let  us  with  this  in  our 
minds  take  a  summary  view  of  the  actions  of  Pollio,  after  the  death 
of  Julius  Caesar  ;  and  let  us  pay  some  attention  to  the  chronology  of 
the  times.  In  the  year  of  Rome  711,  C.  Asinius  Pollio  having  con- 
ducted the  war  against  Sextus  Pornpeius,  on  his  return  from  Spain 
delivered  over  his  army  to  Antony,  after  his  flight  from  Mutina.  In 
the  year  713,  Pollio  held  Cisalpine  Gaul,  as  Antony's  lieutenant ; 
and  along  with  Ventidius  hovered  about  the  rear  of  Salvidienus,  the 
lieutenant  of  Octavius,  who  was  attempting  to  annoy  Lucius  Anto- 
nius :  Lucius  being  besieged  at  Perusia,  Pollio  in  vain  attempted 
his  relief,  and  afterwards  returned  to  Ravenna :  he  held  Venetia  a 
long  time  subject  to  Antony ;  and  after  having  performed  great  ac- 
tions in  that  part  of  the  world,  joined  Antony,  bringing  over  with 
him,  at  the  same  time,  Domitius  ^Enobarbus,  and  the  fleet  under  his 
command.  About  the  end  of  the  year  714,  the  peace  of  Brundu- 
sium  took  place,  the  negotiators  of  which  were  Pollio  as  consul,  on 
the  part  of  Antony,  and  Maecenas  on  the  part  of  Octavius,  and  Coc- 
ceius  on  the  part  of  both,  as  their  common  friend  ;  and  about  this 
time  the  fourth  Eclogue  of  Virgil  was  written.  In  the  year  715, 


404 


NOTES  OPT  LECTURE  XX|. 


Antony  sent  Pollio  as  his  lieutenant  against  the  Parthini  into  Illyri- 
cum  ;  who  triumphed  over  them  in  the  month  of  October.  Thus 
far  VELLEIUS,  APPIAN,  and  Dio.  About  this  time  a  private  disa- 
greement took  place  between  Pollio  and  Octavius ;  and  Octavius 
wrote  some  indecent  verses  against  Pollio.  MACROS.  SATURN,  ii. 
14.  From  this  time  to  the  battle  of  Actium,  which  happened  in 
723,  in  the  beginning  of  September,  Pollio  kept  himself  perfectly 
neutral,  and  took  no  part  in  the  contest  between  Antony  and  Octa- 
vius. "  I  must  not  omit,"  says  VELLEIUS,  ii.  86,  "  a  remarkable  ac- 
tion and  saving  of  Asinius  Pollio.  After  the  peace  of  Brundusium 
(he  should  have  said  after  his  triumph)  he  continued  in  Italy,  nor 
did  he  ever  see  the  queen,  or,  after  the  mind  of  Antony  became  en- 
feebled by  his  destructive  passion,  take  any  part  in  his  affairs  ;  and 
when  Caesar  requested  him  to  accompany  him  to  the  battle  of  Acti- 
um :  The  kindnesses,  said  he,  which  I  have  rendered  Antony,  are 
greater  in  reality  than  those  he  has  rendered  me,  but  the  latter  are 
better  known  to  the  world.  I  will  withdraw  myself  entirely  from 
the  contest,  and  I  shall  become  the  prey  of  the  conqueror."  From 
considering  these  facts,  it  appears  to  me  altogether  incredible,  that 
Virgil  should  send,  and  inscribe  to  Pollio,  a  poem  in  praise  of  Octa- 
vius, and  wholly  written  in  celebration  of  his  family.  LOWTH. 

Virgilii  eclogam  quartam  cum  descriptione  aureae,  sive  Messi- 
anae,  aetatis  ea,  quae  inter  lesaiana  oracula  c.  vii.  seqq.  exstat,  com- 
paravimus  in  Commentar.  ad  lesai.  P.  I.  p.  305.  Causam  similitu- 
dinis  Romanum  inter  atque  Hebraeum  poetam,  respectu  quoque  ha- 
bito  ad  ea  quae  nostro  loco  de  hac  re  Lowthus  disseruit,  satis  expo- 
suit  Heyne  in  Argumento  illi  Eclogae  praemisso.  Illud  vero  mirari 
satis  non  possumus,  in  puero  illo,  quo  nascituro,  Virgilio,  aut  potius 
Sibylla,  canente  aurea  reditura  sit  aetas,  inter  Romanes  illius  tempo- 
fis  quaerendo  tot  tantosque  viros  doctos  et  ingenosos  operam  vanissi- 
mam  consumsisse,  neque  vidisse  eos,  istum  puerum  haud  minus  fic- 
tionis  poeticae  esse,  ac  sunt  ceterae  descriptiones  imaginesque  isto 
in  poemate  obviae.  C.  Asinium  Gajlum,  Pollionis  filium,  a  Virgilio 
illo  carmine  celebrari,  plerorumque  interpretum,  Asconio  Pediano 
auctore,  est  sententia.  Sed  non  cogitarunt  isti  interpretes,  ridicu- 
lum  futurum  Virgilium  fuisse,  si  aliquem  Pollionis  filium  cecinisset, 
antequam  gravida  Consulis  uxor  pepererit.  Quod  Asconii  Pediani 
attinet  testimonium,  cui  multum  in  hac  quaestione  tribuere  solent, 
de  eo  verissimum  iudicium  tulit  Lowthus  p.  402,  not.  Nos  quidein 
nulli  dubitamus,  Maronem  Pollionis  sui  in  orbein  Romanum,  Brun- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXII.  405 


dusino  foedere  a  se  pacatum,  merita  nobilissimo  illo  carmine  ita  ex- 
tollere,  ut  spem  faceret,  fore,  ut  aurea  ilia  aetas,  de  qua  iamdudum 
prisci  cecinere  vates,  earn  puero  quodam  divino,  coelesti  virgine  na- 
to  (vs.  6,  7,)  esse  reversuram,  Pollione  Consule  initium  capiat. 

ROSENMUELLER. 

I  can  see  nothing  so  very  strange  and  unaccountable  in  the  cir- 
cumstance that  two  poets  of  exalted  genius,  in  describing  the  same 
subject,  (the  golden  age),  should  use  similar  language.  It  seems  to 
me  that  the  wonder  which  Lowth  expresses  (p.  183)  is  quite  out 
of  place  here.  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXII. 

[A.  p.  189.]     Alphabetic  poems  of  the  Hebrews. 

The  alphabetic  poems  of  the  Old  Testament  are  the  following  : 
Psalms  xxv.  xxxiv.  xxxvii.  cxi.  cxii.  cxix.  cxlv.  Proverbs  xxxi.  from 
the  tenth  verse  to  the  end  ;  and  Lamentations  i. — iv.  Of  these  the  on- 
ly ones  that  exhibit  any  considerable  decree  of  poetical  merit  are 
Psalm  xxxvii.  and  Lamentations.  The  nature  of  the  composition 
was  extremely  unfavourable  to  that  glow  of  feeling  so  essential  to  the 
higher  kinds  of  poetry  ;  and  the  excellence  of  the  two  poems  just 
mentioned,  notwithstanding  the  disadvantages  resulting  from  the 
mode  of  writing,  evinces  great  skill  and  a  wonderful  command  of 
language  in  their  authors.  The  alphabetic  arrangement  appears  sel- 
dom to  have  been  applied  to  original  composition ;  but  rather  to  new 
collections  of  detached  maxims  and  sayings,  which  had  long  been 
extant  among  the  people :  and  the  design  of  it,  as  Lowth  observes, 
undoubtedly  was  to  aid  the  memory.  The  poems  of  this  sort  are 
very  few  in  number,  and  most  of  them  are  somewhat  imperfect  in 
the  alphabetic  arrangement.  These  imperfections,  in  some  instanc- 
es, may  have  arisen  from  the  errors  of  transcribers.  See  Ps.  xxv. 
where  the  verses  1,  p,  and  *j,  are  wanting ;  Ps.  34:  6,  7  ;  37:  7,  8, 
20,  21 ;  34:  18,  etc.  (Compare  Eichhorn,  Einleitung,  Band  I.  S. 
404  if.)  S. 

[B.  p.  191.]      Subject  of  the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah. 

Michaelis,  in  his  edition  of  Lowth,  attempts  to  defend  the  opin- 
ion of  Josephus,  Jerome,  and  Usher,  in  regard  to  the  occasion  of  the 
Lamentations  o£  Jeremiah.  S. 


406  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXIII. 


Mutavit  tamen  postea  sententiam  Michaelis,  et  Lowthianam 
adoptavit ;  vid  Neue  oriental,  und  exeget.  Bibliothek  P.  I.  p.  106. 
Dathius  quoque,  qui  quum  Prophetas  maiores  ex  recensione  textus 
Hebraei  et  versionum  antiquarum  Latine  versos  notisque  illustrates 
primum  ederet  a.  1779,  existimavit,  leremiam  in  Threnis  deplorarc 
funestissimam  illam  calamitatem,  qua  piissimus  rex  losias  in  proelio 
contra  Aegyptios  vitam  amisit ;  earn  sententiam  quum  librum  suum 
post  sex  annos  curis  secundis  denuo  in  lucem  emiserit,  pluribus  ar- 
gumentis  ipse  refutavit.  Concludit  suam  de  hac  re  disputationem 
his  verbis  :  "  Aliud  accidit  argumentum  adeo  evidens,  ut  ipse  indig- 
ner,  me  eius  vel  oblitum,  vel  negligentiorem  fuisse.  Si  haec  car- 
mina  in  memoriam  optimi  regis  losiae  composita  sunt,  cur  virtutes 
eius,  pietas  in  Deum,  merita  in  rempublicam  non  celebrantur  1  cur 
nulla  mortis  tristissimae  mentio  iniicitur  ?  Si  quoque  concedatur, 
posse  locum  Cap.  IV.  20.  de  rege  losia  explicari,  tamen  hie  unus 
locus  non  sufficit  ad  hunc  regem  tantis  meritis  insignem,  tarn  acerbe 
«ib  omnibus  deploratum,  tanquam  obiectum  primarium  horum  car- 
mium  constituendum.  Q,uae  omnia  lugent  urbem  vastatam,  tern- 
plum  destructum  (V.  6.  seqq.),  omnem  rempublicam  sine  spe  resti- 
tutionis  sublatam."  Sed  locus  iste  IV.  20  ne  quidem  cum  aliqua 
veri  specie  de  losia  explicari  potest.  Sonat  is  ita :  Vita  nostra, 
lovae  unctus,  captus  est  in  eorumfoveis.  Quod  minime  losiae  con- 
venit,  qui  non  captus,  sed  occisus  est,  vid.  2  Reg.  xxiii.  29. 
Plura  vide  in  Eichhornii  Einleit.  m  das  A.  T.  P.  III.  p.  549,  edit, 
sec.,  vel  p.  626  seqq.  edit.  tert.  ROSENMUELLER. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXIII. 

[A.  p.  196.]     PSALM  XLII. 

This  poem  seems  to  have  been  composed  by  David,  when  he 
was  expelled  his  kingdom  by  his  rebellious  son,  and  compelled  to  fly 
to  the  borders  of  Lebanon,  as  it  is  plain  he  did,  from  2  Sam.  xvii. 
24,  26,  27.  Undoubtedly,  whoever  composed  this  Psalm  was  ex- 
pelled from  the  sacred  city,  and  wandered  as  an  exile  in  the  regions 
of  Hermon,  and  the  heights  of  Lebanon,  whence  Jordan  is  fed  by 
the  melting  of  the  perpetual  snow,  (v.  7).  Let  it  be  remembered, 
by  the  way,  that  David  betook  himself  to  these  places  when  he  fled 
from  Saul,  but  concealed  himself  in  the  interior  parts  of  Judea. 
Here  then  he  pitched  his  camp,  protected  by  the  surrounding  moun- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXIII.  407 

tains  and  woods ;  and  hither  the  veteran  soldiers,  attached  personal- 
ly to  him,  and  averse  to  change,  resorted  from  every  part  of  Pales- 
tine. Here  also,  indulging  his  melancholy,  the  prospect  and  the 
objects  about  him  suggested  many  of  the  ideas  in  this  poem.  Ob- 
serving the  deer  which  constantly  came  from  the  distant  valleys  to 
the  fountains  of  Lebanon,  and  comparing  this  circumstance  with 
his  earnest  desire  to  revisit  the  temple  of  God,  and  perhaps  elevat- 
ing his  thoughts  to  a  higher,  celestial  temple,  he  commences  his 
poem  : 

"  As  the  hart  panteth  after  the  water  brooks, 
"  So  panteth  my  soul  after  thee,  O  God. 
"  My  soul  thirsteth  for  God,  for  the  living  God ; 
"  When  shall  I  enter,  and  appear  before  God  !" 

That  is,  enter  into  the  temple,  from  which  I  am  now  an  exile.  He 
adds  a  bitterer  cause  of  grief  than  his  exile,  namely,  the  reproaches 
of  the  multitude,  and  the  cruel  taunt,  that  he  is  deserted  of  his  God, 
and  that  the  deity,  of  whom  he  had  boasted,  fails  to  appear  for  his 
assistance,  than  which  nothing  can  be  more  grating  to  an  honest 
mind,  and  a  mind  conscious  of  its  own  piety.  Compare  2  Sam.  xvi. 
7,8. 

"  My  tears  have  been  my  sustenance, 
"  By  day  and  by  night, 
"  While  they  continually  say  unto  me, 
'•  Where  is  now  thy  God  ?" 

The  repetition  of  the  name  of  God  raises  in  him  fresh  uneasiness, 
and  causes  all  his  wounds  to  bleed  again  :  this  forces  him  to  ex- 
claim :  "  I  remember  God,  and  I  dissolve  in  tears."  For  so  the 
word  inbtf  ought  to  be  translated,  and  not  according  to  the  Masore- 
tic  punctuation,  "  I  remember  these  things :"  since  an  obscurity 
arises  from  this  punctuation,  and  it  is  difficult  to  say  what  things 
are  referred  to. 

"  I  remember  God,  and  pour  out  myself  in  tears : 

"  When  I  went  with  the  multitude  to  the  temple  of  God, 

"  With  the  voice  of  joy  and  gladnesr,  with  the  multitude  leaping  for  joy." 

He  now  restrains  his  tears  : 

"  Why  art  thou  so  cast  down,  O  my  soul  ? 
"  And  why  art  thou  so  disquieted  within  me  ? 
"  Hope  thou  in  God,  for  I  still  shall  praise  him." 

He  again  breaks  forth  into  lamentations,  with  which  he  elegantly 
intermingles  a  poetical  description  of  Lebanon.  There  are  upon 


408  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXIII. 


those  hills  frequent  cataracts,  and,  in  the  spring  season,  the  rivulets 
are  uncommonly  turbid  by  the  melting  of  the  snow : 

"  Deep  calleth  unto  deep  at  the  noise  of  thy  cataracts; 
"  And  all  thy  waves  and  thy  billows  are  gone  over  me." 

These  form  the  principal  imagery  of  the  poem,  and  I  omit  the  rest, 
lest  I  should  fatigue  the  reader  by  the  minuteness  of  criticism, 
which  is  both  useless  and  impertinent,  when  the  subject  wants  no 
illustration.  MICHAELIS. 

PSALM  XLIII.  connected  with  XLII. 

I  find  EUSEBIUS  was  formerly  of  the  same  opinion.  "  This 
Psalm  is  without  a  title  in  the  original,  and  consequently  in  all  the 
old  translations  :  there  is  indeed  great  reason,  from  the  similarity  of 
thought  and  expression  in  both  the  Psalms,  to  believe  that  it  original- 
ly made  a  part  of  the  Psalm  preceding."  In  Psalm  xliii.  this  con- 
jecture receives  further  confirmation  from  the  manuscripts.  The 
xliid  and  xliiid  Psalms  are  united  together  in  twenty-two  MSS. 
The  Psalms,  however,  are  distinguished  from  each  other  in  the 
MSS.  rarely  by  the  numeral  letters,  but  chiefly  by  these  two  meth- 
ods :  either  by  a  single  word  placed  in  the  vacant  space  between 
them,  which  is  usually  the  breadth  of  one  line  :  and  this  word  is 
commonly  the  last  word  of  the  preceding,  or  the  initial  word  of  the 
succeeding  Psalm ;  or  else  by  the  first  word  of  each  Psalm  being 
transcribed  in  letters  of  a  larger  size.  LOWTH. 

[B.  p.  196.]     Book  ofJasher, 

Since  so  many  conjectures  have  been  published  concerning  the 
book  of  Jasher  and  its  title,  without  coming  to  any  certain  decision, 
I  will  also,  without  further  apology,  venture  to  give  my  sentiments 
upon  it.  The  book  of  Jasher  is  twice  quoted,  first  in  Josh.  x.  13, 
where  the  quotation  is  evidently  poetical,  and  forms  exactly  three 
distichs : 

"  Sun,  stand  thou  still  upon  Gibeon, 

"  And  thou  Moon,  in  the  valley  of  Ajalon  : 

"  And  the  Sun  stood  still,  and  the  Moon  stayed  her  course, 

"  Until  the  people  were  avenged  of  their  enemies. 

"  And  the  Sun  tarried  in  the  midst  of  the  heavens, 

"  And  hasted  not  to  go  down  in  a  whole  day." 

And  afterwards  in  the  passage  referred  to  in  the  text,  we  find  the 
above  lamentation  of  David  extracted  from  it.  The  custom  of  the 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXIIL.  409 

Hebrews  giving  titles  to  their  books  from  the  initial  word  is  well 
known,  as  Genesis  is  called  rPtfN^s,  etc.  They  also  sometimes 
named  the  book,  from  some  remarkable  word  in  the  first  sentence  ; 
thus  the  book  of  Numbers  is  sometimes  called  nsn^a.  We  find 
also  in  their  writings,  canticles  which  had  been  produced  on  impor- 
tant occasions,  introduced  by  some  form  of  this  kind  :  -ittr  tN  (then 
sang)  or  ->ttJ^,  etc.  thus  nttJfc — ptf;  TK,  "then  sang  Moses," 
Exod.  xv.  1.  rnill  "K??rn»  "and  Deborah  sang,"  Jud.  v.  1.  See 
also  the  same  inscription  of  Psalm  xviii.  Thus  I  suppose  the  book 
of  Jashcr  to  have  been  some  collection  of  sacred  songs,  composed  at 
different  times  and  on  different  occasions,  and  to  have  had  this  title, 
because  the  hook  itself  and  most  of  the  songs  began  in  general  with 
this  word  :  1^*1.*  And  the  old  Syriac  translator  was  certainly  of 
this  opinion,  when  in  these  places  he  substituted  the  word  "iiD"^  (he 
sang;)  the  meaning  of  which,  says  the  ARABIC  commentator,  is  a 
book  of  songs  ;  in  another  place  he  himself  explains  it  by  a  word 
expressive  of  hymns.  I,  however,  agree  in  opinion  with  those, 
how  suppose  this  Lamentation  originally  to  have  borne  the  title  of 
ZYuJp.  (a  bow)  either  in  memory  of  the  slaughter  made  by  the  archers 
of  the  enemy,  or  from  the  bow  of  Jonathan,  of  which  particular  men- 
tion is  made  in  verse  22.  The  LXX  seem  to  have  favoured  this 
opinion.  LOWTH. 

The  opinion  of  Lowth  in  regard  to  the  contents  of  the  book  of  Jash- 
er  is  the  one  now  most  generally  admitted  among  the  ablest  critics ; 
though  there  is  a  difference  of  opinion  respecting  the  etymology  of 
the  word.  (Compare  Herder,  Geist,  Th.  IT.  S.  129;  Gesenius, 
Lex.  in  li^).  Two  copies  of  this  ancient  book  are  said  to  have 
been  recently  discovered,  one  in  Persia  and  the  other  in  Morocco ; 
from  which  an  edition  of  the  work  is  to  be  printed  in  England.  S. 

Ilgen  T,2J"n  1SD  notare  arbitratur  librum  dcxtfritatis,  quo  nom- 
ine collectio  carminum,  exempla  dexteritatis  et  omnis  virtutis,  qualis 
ea  illo  tempore  esse  poterat,  celebraritium,  nuncupata  esset,  quetnad- 
modum  Celebris  cuiusdarii  apud  Arabas  Antholoffiae  liber  primus, 
qui  carmina  continet  heroum  facta  laudantia,  &»«M»^,  Hkamasa, 
id  est,  virtus  bellica,  inscribitur.  (C.  D.  Ilgen  de  itnb.  lapidco,  et 
solis  ac  lunae  mora,  etc.  Lips.  1793).  •  ROSENMUELLER. 

Concerning  the  stopping  of  the  sun  and  moon  in  their  course, 
compare  Homer,  Iliad,  II.  412  ff. 


*  The  future  tense  of  nTO  is  TSJ\  and  not  "ftp,  as  Lowth  supposes. 

52 ' 


410  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXIV. 

[C.  p.  199.]     Meaning  of  r\  aft  2  SAM.  I.  18. 

Lowthianam  coniecturam  confirmat  GVIL.  IONES,  Poes.  Asiat. 
Commentar.  L.  IV.  C.  XIII.  p.  326.  edit.  prim.  Oxon.,  s.  p.  269. 
Lips.  not.  :  "  Inscribitur,"  inquit,  "  hoc  poema  etiam  ni?3j5,  Arcus, 
more  Asiaticorum,  qui  ea  carmina,  quibus  praecipue  delectantur, 
inscriptione  brevi,  et  de  versu  quodam  insigniori  desumpta,  notare 
solent.  Sic  percelebratum  carmen  poetae  Cab  Ben  Zoheir  [a  G. 
I.  Lette  editum  una  cum  Amralkeisii  Moallaka,  Lugd.  Batav.  1748. 
4.]  vocitatur  modo  (jV-tf^l,  Securitas,  modo  OVXAW  v^/^  Vj  JBanat 
Soai,  propterea  quod  hoc  habeat  initium  : 


Abiit  arnica  mea  Soada,  et  cor  meum  hodie  moerore  conficitur  ! 
Sic  Alcorani  capita  inscribuntur  :  /^XJl  [Sur.  CVIII.  de  Cauthar, 
-fluvio  Paradisi,  cuius  in  eo  Cap.  mentio],  ^y**'  [Elephas,  Sur. 
CV.],  vJ&xJf  [Sanguis  concretus,  Sur  XCVL],  J/AJf  [Nox,Sur. 
XCIL],  (j^<f*xJf  [Sol,  Sur  XCI].  Ceterum  Jones  1.  c.  Thren- 
um  Davidicum  non  solum  in  versiculos  distinctum,  verum  etiam  el- 
egantissima  Graeca  metaphrasi  expressum  exhibuit. 

ROSENMUELLER. 


NOTES  ON   LECTURE  XXIV. 

[A.  p.  202.]    ECCLESIASTES  xii.  11. 

This  I  think  is  one  of  the  gemmate  proverbs  (or  those  which 
"  contain  a  double  image,"  as  mentioned  before)  and  requires  a 
different  mode  of  interpretation  for  the  two  images,  as  having  noth- 
ing coalescent  in  their  natures. — It  is  the  property  of  a  proverb  to 
prick  sharply,  and  hold  Jirmly.  The  first  idea  is  included  in  the 
image  of  a  goad — the  latter  in  the  nail  deeply,  and  therefore  jirmly 
driven.  HENLEY. 

In  Palestine,  it  formerly  made  an  essential  part  of  the  building 
of  a  house,  to  furnish  the  inside  of  the  several  apartments  with  sets 
of  spikes,  nails,  or  large  pegs,  upon  which  to  dispose  of,  and  hang 
up,  the  several  movables  in  common  use,  and  proper  to  the  apart- 
ment. These  spikes  they  worked  into  the  walls  at  the  first  erection 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXIV.  411 

of  them  ;  the  walls  being  of  such  materials,  that  they  could  not  bear 
their  being  driven  in  afterwards  ;  and  they  were  contrived  so  as  to 
strengthen  the  walls  by  binding  the  parts  together,  as  well  as  to 
serve  for  convenience.  LOWTH. 


[B.  P.  205.] 

It  is  the  opinion  of  a  very  ingenious  writer,  in  a  learned  work 
which  he  has  lately  produced,  that  the  greater  part  of  this  book  was 
written  in  prose,  but  that  it  contains  many  scraps  of  poetry,  intro- 
duced as  occasion  served  :  and  to  this  opinion  I  am  inclined  to  as- 
sent. See  A.  V.  Desvoeux,  Tent.  Phil,  et  Crit.  in  Eccl.  Lib.  II. 
Cap.  1.  LOWTH. 

For  a  very  full  and  interesting  discussion  of  the  whole  subject, 
see  Eichhorn,  (Einleitung,  Band  V.  SS.  250—288).  The  subject 
is  discussed  more  briefly,  but  with  equal  learning  and  greater  sobrie- 
ty, by  Jahn,  (Introduction  to  the  Old  Testament,  pp.  490  —  497  of 
Turner's  translation).  This  is  a  book  which  ought  to  be  in  the 
hands  of  every  biblical  student.  He  who  merely  reads  it,  will  be 
disappointed  ;  but  he  who  studies  it,  will  be  richly  rewarded  for  his 
labour.  .  S. 

[C.  p.  209.]     ECCLESIASTICUS  xxiv.  27. 

The  grandson  of  Sirach  appears  in  this  place  to  have  fallen  into 
an  error,  and  to  have  failed  of  expressing  the  sentiment  of  his  ances- 
tor :  for  finding  the  word  imperfectly  written  in  his  copy,  he  read  it 
*liO,  and  rashly  translated  it  ojg  cpwg  (as  the  light.)  Observe  also 
the  incongruity  of  this  word  with  the  context,  according  to  the  com- 
mon reading  :  Pison,  Tigris,  Euphrates,  Jordan,  the  light,  Gihon  : 
in  the  place  of  the  light,  some  river  must  certainly  be  intended,  and 
therefore  we  ought  to  read  *nar!3,  o/ff  o  IIoTctfioG,  as  the  river,  that 
is,  the  Nile,  so  called,  for  the  sake  of  distinction  :  and  doubtless  to 
a  Jew,  who  resided  in  its  neighbourhood,  and  who  was  a  spectator 
of  its  wonderful  inundations,  it  would  appear  worthy  of  being  rank- 
ed with  the  most  noble  rivers,  and  consequently  worthy  of  this  dis- 
tinction. Moreover,  JABLONSKY,  Pantheon  Egypt,  lib.  iv.  cap.  i. 
sect.  2,  is  of  opinion,  that  the  word  'nN'1  chiefly  refers  to  the  Nile  in 
the  sacred  writers  ;  and  supposes  ^N*1,  in  the  Egyptian  JARO,  to  have 
been  the  first  and  only  name  of  the  Nile  among  the  Egyptians. 
This  word,  however,  itself  is  defectively  read  ^ao,  Amos  viii.  8, 
("  it  is  read  "jaos  in  four  MSS."  K.)  but  being  repeated  immediate* 


412  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXV. 


ly,  it  is  more  fully  expressed  ifirs,  ix.  5.  See  CAPPELL,  Grit.  Sac. 
iv.  2,  11.  A  learned  friend  of  mine  observed  to  me,  that  the  great 
BOCHART  had  long  since  been  of  the  same  opinion,  whose  authority 
I  am  happy  to  adduce  in  favour  of  what  I  have  here  asserted :  "  HK 
is  a  r>ver,  as  well  as  "ifcO.  So  it  occurs  Amos  viii.  8,  where  it  is 
spoken  of  the  Nile,  and  in  the  same  sense  it  is  used  by  the  son  of 
Sirach,  Ecclus.  xxiv.  27,  where  it  has  been  hastily  translated  the 
light.''  Chanaan,  lib.  i.  cap.  23.  LOWTH. 


NOTES  ON   LECTURE  XXV. 

[A.  p.  211.]     Antiquity  oftJte  ode. 

This  conclusion  appears  to  me  neither  consonant  to  reason  nor 
to  fact.  The  first  use  of  poetry  was  probably  to  preserve  the  re- 
membrance of  events,  and  not  the  expressions  of  passion  ;  accord- 
ingly, the  remains  of  the  first  poetic  compositions  appear  to  have 
been  of  the  former  kind.  One  instance  was  given  in  a  preceding 
Lecture  relative  to  the  history  of  Lamech,  and  another  may,  here  be 
added  concerning  that  of  Nimrod — "  He  was  a  mighty  hunter  (rath- 
er warrior)  before  the  Lord  :"  wherefore  it  is  said  : — 

"  As  Nimrod  the  mighty  hunter  before  the  Lord." 

Agreeable  to  this  idea  is  an  observation,  respecting  the  Arabians, 
of  the  late  ingenious  but  ill-treated  Dr.  Brown  :  "  The  oldest  compo- 
sitions are  in  rhythm,  or  rude  verse,  and  are  often  cited  as  proofs  of 
their  subsequent  history."  It  is  not  only  evident  that  Moses  applied 
them  in  this  way,  but  also  that  they  were  long  prior  to  any  example 
of  the  existence  of  an  ode ;  which,  however,  seems  to  have  been  in 
fact,  as  well  as  in  nature,  the  next  species  of  poetic  composition. 

HENLEY. 

The  rude  poetry  of  barbarous  nations  (as  far  as  we  can  judge 
from  the  accounts  of  those  who  have  visited  the  South  Sea  Islands 
and  the  Indian  nations)  relates  in  general  to  love  and  war ;  it  is  em- 
ployed in  cherishing,  or  in  exciting  the  passions.  Notwithstanding, 
therefore,  the  ingenuity  of  the  above  remark  (which  on  that  account 
I  would  not  omit)  I  am  inclined  to  think  there  is  more  foundation 
for  our  author's  theory  than  Mr.  H.  supposes.  See  Essays  Hist,  and 
Mor.  Ess.  i.  p.  31 .  GREGORY. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXV.  413 


[B.  p.  214.]     Lyric  poetry  of  David. 

It  will  not  be  unseasonable  in  this  place,  perhaps,  to  offer  a  few 
remarks  on  the  peculiar  character  of  the  lyric  poetry  of  David.  For 
some  commentators,  by  too  indiscriminately  praising  it,  have  paid  no 
regard  to  its  peculiar  characteristics  ;  and  thus,  from  an  intemperate 
zeal,  the  poet  has  even  lost  a  part  of  that  commendation  which  was 
justly  due  to  him. 

For  my  part,  judging  rather  by  my  taste  and  feelings,  than  by 
any  rules  of  art,  I  think  David  seems  to  excel  in  this  first  species  of 
ode,  the  characteristic  of  which  is  sweetness.  He  is  unequalled 
when  he  describes  the  objects  of  nature,  the  fields,  the  woods,  the 
fountains  ;  and  of  his  other  odes  those  are  most  excellent,  which  he 
composed  in  his  exiles  :  nor  is  this  any  thing  extraordinary  ;  he  had 
then  more  leisure  for  the  cultivation  of  poetry,  he  experienced  more 
vivid  sensations  than  at  other  times,  and  he  treated  of  those  objects 
which,  being  immediately  before  his  eyes,  brought  back  to  his  mind 
the  recollection  of  his  youth,  and  inspired  his  imagination  with  fresh 
vigour.  It  is  however  remarkable,  that  those  which  he  composed  in 
his  old  age,  when  he  fled  from  Absalom,  not  only  equal  the  fruits  of 
his  early  years,  but  even  surpass  them  in  fire  and  spirit :  if,  as  I  am 
fully  persuaded,  the  twenty-third  and  forty-second  Psalms  were  pro- 
duced during  that  exile. 

On  the  other  hand,  those  Psalms  interest  me  less,  in  which  the 
more  violent  affections  prevail,  whether  of  sorrow  or  indignation,  not 
even  excepting  such  as  imprecate  curses  on  his  enemies.  There  is 
in  these  much  of  the  terrific  ;  but  in  reading  them  the  heart  is  not 
affected,  the  passions  are  not  vehemently  excited.  These  odes  do 
not  possess  that  general  solemnity  and  awful  sublimity  which  charac- 
terize the  book  of  Job,  a  composition  of  a  different  class,  but  pos- 
sessing exquisite  force  in  moving  the  passions.  Neither  are  loftiness 
of  diction,  or  boldness  in  describing  objects  of  terror,  to  be  account- 
ed among  the  excellencies  of  David  ;  for  in  these  respects  he  not 
only  yields,  in  my  opinion,  to  Job,  but  also  to  Moses.  I  do  not  ex- 
cept the  eighteenth  Psalm,  in  the  first  verses  of  which  I  observe  more 
of  art  and  design,  than  of  real  horror  and  sublimity  :  in  what  follows, 
the  warmth  of  the  composition  subsides,  and  it  becomes  more  tem- 
perate than  might  be  expected  from  such  an  exordium.  The  Mosa- 
ic Psalms  I  confess  please  me  more  in  this  respect,  and  therefore  I 
prefer  the  twenty-ninth  to  that  in  question.  MICHAELIS. 


414 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXV. 


[C.  p.  215.]     PSALM  XXIH. 

This  Psalm  is  deserving  of  all  the  commendation  which  our  au- 
thor has  bestowed  upon  it.  If  I  am  not  mistaken,  it  was  composed 
by  David,  when  he  was  expelled  from  the  holy  city  and  temple :  for 
in  the  6th  verse  he  hopes  for  a  return  to  the  house  of  God.  Since 
of  all  the  divine  mercies  he  particularly  commemorates  this,  that  in 
time  of  necessity  he  wants  for  nothing,  and  is  even  received  to  a 
banquet  in  the  sight  of  his  enemies,  I  conceive  it  to  relate  to  that 
time,  when,  flying  from  the  contest  with  his  disobedient  son,  he 
pitched  his  camp  beyond  Jordan,  and  was  in  danger  of  seeing  his 
little  army  perish  for  want  of  provision  in  that  uncultivated  region, 
or  of  being  deserted  by  all  his  friends.  Affairs,  however,  turned 
out  quite  different :  for  what  he  could  not  foresee  or  hope,  the  Al- 
mighty performed  for  him.  The  veteran  soldiers  flowed  in  to  him 
from  every  quarter,  and  his  whole  camp  was  so  liberally  supported 
by  the  good  and  opulent  citizens,  that  in  this  very  situation  he  was 
enabled  to  collect  an  army  and  risk  the  event  of  a  battle.  See  2 
Sam.  xvii.  26 — 29. 

He  therefore  compares  himself  to  a  sheep,  and  the  Almighty  to 
a  shepherd  :  a  very  obvious  figure,  and  which  every  day  occurred  to 
his  sight  during  his  stay  in  those  desert  parts.  The  sheep,  timid, 
defenceless,  exposed  to  all  the  beasts  of  prey,  and  possessed  of  little 
knowledge  or  power  of  foreseeing  or  avoiding  danger,  are  indebted 
for  life,  safety,  and  every  thing,  to  the  care  of  the  shepherd.  We 
must  remember  also,  that  the  exiled  king  had  formerly  himself  been 
a  shepherd.  The  recollection  therefore  of  his  past  life  breaks  in  up- 
on his  mind.  "  Jehovah, "  says  he,  "  is  my  shepherd,  I  shall  want 
nothing."  It  is  his  province  to  provide  for  my  existence,  and  to 
procure  for  me  those  blessings  xvhich  I  am  unable  to  obtain  for  my- 
self. The  tender  herb  (tt'in ,  which  is  probably  the  virgin  herb,  or 
that  which  has  not  budded  into  seed  or  blossom)  is  more  grateful  to 
sheep  than  that  which  is  seeded  (nii)2>),  Gen.  i.  10,  11.  In  mea- 
dows, therefore,  covered  with  the  green  and  tender  grass,  he  sup- 
poses Jehovah  to  cause  him  to  rest  under  his  care.  He  was  expell- 
ed to  Lebanon,  from  the  tops  of  which  cataracts  of  melted  snow  are 
constantly  falling  :  these  are  dangerous  for  sheep  to  approach,  nor 
is  the  water  sufficiently  wholesome.  He  therefore  adds,  that  he  is 
led  to  waters  gently  flowing,  where  the  clear  stream  meanders 
through  the  fertile  plain.  The  scene  which  was  before  his  eyes  con- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXV.  415 

eisted  of  rude  hills  and  valleys,  deep,  gloomy,  dark,  and  horrid,  the 
haunts  only  of  the  fiercest  animals.  I  would  here  remark,  that  the 
word  mJDbiS,  which,  according  to  the  Masoretic  punctuation,  is  read 
rnttbit,  and  translated  the  shadows  of  death,  would  be  better  read 
*rittb£j  and  translated  simply  shades,  or  the  valley  of  the  shades,  and 
I  am  led  to  this  conclusion  by  comparing  it  with  the  Arabic.  There 
is  no  safety  for  the  sheep  in  these  valleys  but  in  the  care  of  the  shep- 
herd. You  are  therefore  presented  with  a  great  variety  of  contrast- 
ed imagery  in  this  Psalm  ;  on  the  one  hand,  the  open  pastures,  and 
the  flowing  rivulets,  the  recollection  of  which  never  fails  to  delight  ; 
and  on  the  other  hand,  the  cheerless  and  gloomy  valleys,  which  in- 
spire the  reader  with  fresh  horror.  Descending  from  figurative  to 
plain  language,  he  next  celebrates  the  bounty  of  God  in  preparing 
him  a  banquet  in  the  face  of  his  enemies  ;  and  therefore  regales 
himself  with  the  delicious  hope,  that  he  shall  once  more  be  restored 
to  his  sacred  temple.  MICHAELIS. 


[D.  p.  21G.] 

This  Psalm  is  one  of  the  fifteen,  which  are  entitled,  Odes  of  the 
Ascensions  :  that  is,  which  were  sung  when  the  people  came  up  ei- 
ther to  worship  in  Jerusalem  at  the  annual  festivals,  or  perhaps  from 
the  Babylonish  captivity.  The  return  is  certainly  called  "  the  as- 
cension or  coming  up  from  Babylon,"  Ezr.  vii.  9.  And  the  old  SYRIAO 
translator,  who  explains  the  subjects  of  the  Psalms  by  apposite  titles, 
refers  to  this  circumstance  almost  all  the  Psalms  that  bear  this  in- 
scription ;  some  of  them  indeed  without  sufficient  foundation  ;  but 
many  of  them  manifestly  have  relation  to  it.  Theodoret  indiscrim- 
inately explains  them  all  as  relating  to  the  Babylonish  captivity  :  and 
thus  illustrates  the  title  :  "  Odes  of  the  Ascensions  :  Theodotion, 
"  Songs  of  the  Ascensions  :"  But  Symmachus  and  Aquila,  "on  the  re- 
turns." It  is  evident  that  the  coming  up  and  the  ascent  relate  to 
the  return  of  the  people  from  the  Babylonish  captivity."  THEOD. 
in  Ps.  cxx.  But  we  must  not  omit  remarking  also,  that  both  in  the 
Old  and  New  Testament  there  is  scarcely  a  phrase  more  common 
than  "  to  go  up  to  Jerusalem,  to  go  up  to  the  feast,"  etc.  (See  John,, 
vii.  8.)  And  observe  above  the  rest,  Ps.  cxxii.  which  can  scarcely 
be  applied  to  any  thing  but  the  celebration  of  some  festival.  What 
the  Jews  say  about  the  steps  ascending  to  the  temple  is  unworthy 
the  attention  of  any  person  of  common  sense.  In  the  last  period  of 
this  Psalm,  the  particle  &U5  is  necessarily  to  be  referred  to  the  word 


416  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXV. 


,  and  there  is  nothing  else  to  which  it  can  be  referred.  Besides, 
to  what,  except  to  Sion,  can  the  promises  nD~Orj  and  D^n  relate  ? 
(See  particularly  Ps.  cxxxii.  13  and  15.)  These  words  are  indeed 
ambiguous,  so  that  they  may  refer  either  to  temporal  or  eternal  hap- 
piness, or  to  both  alike.  (Compare  Deut.  xxviii.  2,  etc.  with  Ps. 
xxiv.  5,  and  Prov.  xxvii.  27,  with  Dan.  xxii.  2.)  And  in  this  place, 
according  to  the  nature  of  the  mystical  allegory,  they  may  be  inter- 
preted in  either  sense.  If  these  remarks  be  true,  the  critics  have 
taken  a  great  deal  of  pains  about  nothing.  There  is  no  occasion 
for  emendation.  If  the  ellipsis  be  only  supplied  by  the  word  ^t2l 
(as  the  dew)  or  simply  by  the  particle  1  or  D  (and  or  as)  before  the 
word  descending  (or  which  descends)  the  construction  will  be  com- 
plete. In  the  same  manner  Hezekiah  says  in  Isaiah  : 

"  qSBSN  fS>  Tiay  0103."     Chap,  xxxviii.  14.  LOWTH. 

Ambigo  adhuc,  nihil  de  titulis  Psalmorum  certi  statui  posse  ra- 
tus,  dum  voces  musicos  et  poeticas  orientis  ignoramus.     Inter   has 

sine  dubio  est  scalae  nomen.     In   ASSEMANI  Bibliotheca  Orientali, 

.    p  jf  .  •• 

T.  I.  p.  62,  invenio  J.JM  £0?    ja-^on)  scalas  odarum,  quae  tamen 

quales  sint,  dicere  non  habeo.  MICHAELIS. 

Cf.  I.  G.  EICHHORNII   Praefat.   ad  lonesii  Commentarios  Poes. 
Asiat.  p.  XXXII.  et  XXXIV.,  ubi  ipsa  Assemanii  verba  adducun- 

(P-      ..      <n 
A—  -^*flD  esse  nomen  cuidam   carminum 

generi  proprium.  Hebraeorum  sententia,  a  Nostratibus  fere  explo- 
sa,  Psalmos  illos  quindecim  qui  CXIX.  excipiunt,  appellatos  esse 
rnb^an  "^'I)  ideo,  quod  decantari  Levitis  sueverint  ex  gradibus  illis 
quindecim,  per  quos  ex  feminarum  atrio,  in  templo  Hierosolymitano, 
ad  Israelitarum  atriurn  ascendendum  erat,  doctum  defensorem  nacta 
est  I.  G.  LACKEMACHER  in  Observatt.  philologg.  P.  IX.  p.  60.,  cf. 
P.  I.  p.  26.  Varias  de  istius  appellationis  ratione  sententias  expen- 
dit  EBERHARD  TILING  in  Disquisitione  de  ratione  Inscriptionis  XV. 
Psalmorum,  qui  dicuntur  rnb^ttn  ^*<V,  seu  Cantica  Ascensionum, 
una  cum  succincta  expositione  eorundem,  Bremae  1765,  in  octon. 
Nee  non  I.  A.  STARK  in  Davidis  aliorumque  Poetarum  Hebraeor. 
Carmina.  Vol.  I.  p.  422.  seqq.  et  I.  I.  BELLERMANN  in  dem  Ver- 
such  ueber  die  Metrik  der  Hebraeer,  p.  190.  seqq.,  qui  appellationem 
rnb^ar,  -p'ij  ad  rem  metricam  pertinere,  illaque  carmen  versibus 
trochaicis  constans  significari  existimat,  fib?.  73  n  enim  esse  pedem 
metricum,  in  quo  tonus  ascendat,  id  est,  cuius  syllaba  prior  sit  longa. 
Alias  coniecturas  dabit  Argumentum  a  Nobis  Psalmo  cxx.  prae- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVI.  417 

missum  in  Psalmis  perpetua  Annotatione  illustratis,  Vol.  III.  p.  2514 
seqq.  ROSENMUELLER. 

(Compare  Stuart's  Hebrew  Chrestomathy,  p.  198 ;  De  Wette, 
Commentar  ueber  die  Psalmen,  Einleitung,  SS.  43,  44  ;  and  Ge- 
senius,  Commentar  ueber  Jes.  17:  13.  26:  21).  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVI. 

[A.  p.  218.]     PSALM  xci.  9. 

I  apprehend  there  is  no  change  of  person  till  the   14th  verse  ^ 
for  the  9th  verse  I  take  to  be  of  quite  a  different  nature. 
"  For  thou,  JEHOVAH,  art  my  hope, 
"  Very  high  hast  thou  placed  thy  refuge." 

There  are  many  interpretations  of  this  period,  which  are  differently 
approved  by  different  persons.  One  of  these  is,  that  the  first  mem- 
ber consists  of  an  address  from  the  believer  to  God,  and  the  second 
of  a  reply  from  the  prophet  to  the  believer  :  which  is  extremely  harsh 
and  improbable,  although  the  plain  and  obvious  construction  of  the 
passage  favours  this  opinion.  Others,  among  which  are  the  old 
translators,  suppose,  that  in  the  second  line  there  is  no  change  of 
persons  at  all,  but  that  JEHOVAH  is  still  spoken  of:  , 

•'  Who  hast  placed  thy  dwelling  on  high ;" 

which  is  altogether  nothing.  Others,  in  fine,  to  avoid  these  absur- 
dities, have  fallen  into  still  greater  ;  for  they  give  quite  a  new  turn 
to  the  sentence,  altering  the  construction  in  this  manner  : 

"  For  thou,  JEHOVAH,  who  art  my  hope, 

"  Hast  placed  thy  refuge  very  high  :" 

But  this  I  think  will  scarcely  be  endured  by  a  good  ear,  which  is 
ever,  so  little  accustomed  to  the  Hebrew  idiom.  THEODORET  for- 
merly made  a  different  attempt  upon  the  passage : 

"  There  is  wanting  to  the  construction  of  the  sentence,  THOU 
HAST  SAID,  thou  Lord  art  my  hope.  This  is  the  usual  idiom  of  the 
prophetic  writings,  and  especially  of  the  Psalms." 

I  have  very  little  doubt  that  this  is  the  true  sense  of  the  passage. 

LOWTH. 

[B.  p.  222.]     Pindaric  and.  Hebrew  ode. 

Multo  verius,  nostra  sententia,  de  odae  Hebraeae  atque  Pindar- 
ioae  ratione,  iudicium  tulit  Lowthus,  quam  A.  F.  RVCKERSFELDER, 
53 


418  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVI. 

qui  in  Commentatwne  quaedam  Cantica  Sacra  ex  genio  Pindarico- 
rum  illustrante  (in  Auctoris  Sylloge  Commentationum  et  Observa- 
tionum  philologico-exegeticarum  et  crilicarum,  Daventr.  1762  in 
octon.)  probare  conatus  est,  non  ignota  Hebraeis  fuisse  carmina, 
quae  Pindaricum  internum  aeque  ac  externum  prae  se  ferant  char- 
acterem,  et  ita  quidem,  ut  videri  possit,  earn  poesin  Pindaro  dein 
usitatam,  primum  Ebraeis  debere  originem.  Quern  in  finem  duo 
celeberrima  carmina,  Deborae  'JEnwlxiov,  lud.  v.  et  Psalmum 
Ixviii.  in  Strophas  Chorosque  divisa,  atque  ad  Pindarici  carmi- 
nis  regulas  exacta  proposuit.  duod  autem  carminis  Pindarici  pri- 
marium  characterem  in  eo  situm  esse  statuit,  quod  obiectum  carmi- 
nis poetae  semper  proxime  sub  oculo  versetur,  seu  quod  orrinia  in  Pin- 
dari  carminibus  faciant  ad  confirmandam  vel  illustrandam  unicam 
propositionem  primariam,  sine  digressionibus,a.ut  aliis  poetarum  licen- 
tiis,  duplicem  scopum  coniungentibus,  id,  ut  operose  demonstrare 
studeat  unius  alteriusve  odae  Pindaricae  analysi,  tamen  nemini  per- 
suaserit.  ROSENMUELLER. 

[C.  p.  224.]      Didactic  and  historic  Psalms. 

Ad  secundum  poeseos  lyricae  genus,  quod  lenioris  et  remissions 
sonus  odas  constituit,  I.  A.  STARK  (in  Sylloge  Commentatt.  p.  56. 
seqq.,  et  in  Davidis  aliorumque  poetarum  Hebraeorum  Carmm.  Libr. 
V.  p.  604  jf  recte  observat  maxime  referendos  esse  didactici  atque 
historici  argumenti  Psalmos.  Poeta  in  his  carminibus  non  ipse  fin- 
git,  non  inflammatae  imaginationi  et  concitatis  affectibus  indulget ; 
sed  inventam  iam  a  veritate  materiam  arripit,  earn  poeseos  gratiis 
condecoratam  lectori  et  spectatori  ante  oculos  ponit,  et  ita  quidem, 
ut  modo  ad  primum,  sublimem,  characterem  ascendat  et  summo 
splendore  atque  magnificentia  illam  induat :  modo  vero  ad  planum 
characterem  se  demittat,  et  omnibus  gratiis,  pulchritudine  atque  iu- 
cunditate  earn  ornet.  Et  e  Psalmis  quidem  didactici  argumenti 
exempla  profert  Ps.  xxiii.  xxvii.  xlvi.  1.  cxxviii.,  ex  historicis  Ps.  cv. 
cvi.,  quorum  ille  res  Israelitarum  a  primis  gentis  initiis  ad  Palestinae 
occupationem  celebrat,  hie  vero  fata  eorum  ab  exitu  ex  Aegypto  ad 
reditum  ex  captivitate  Babylonica  canit.  ROSENMUELLER. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVlI. 


NOTES   ON   LECTURE   XXVII. 

[A.  p.  228.]     PSALM  xxiv.  6. 
It  ought  to  be  read  either  with  the  LXX.  VULG.  ARAB. 


U  1         ^^3  I  T  Y 


13  B  ;  or  with  the  SYR.  Sps^  btf  "pD,  which  is  much  the 
same.  "  It  is  Sp  ^  ^nbtt  "p-3  m  a  ^^.  m  possession  of  EBNER 
ESCHENBACH,  JNorimberg.  See  NADLERI  Disscrtat.  de  EBNERI 
Codicibus  MStis.  1748."  K.  The  holy  ark,  and  the  shechinah 
which  remained  upon  it,  the  symbol  of  the  divine  presence,  is  called 
the  face  of  God :  and  to  seek  the  face  of  God,  is  to  appear  before 
the  ark,  to  worship  at  the  sanctuary  of  God  ;  which  was  required  of 
the  Israelites  thrice  a  year.  See  2  Sam.  xxi.  1.  2  Chron.  vii.  14. 
Ps.  xxvii.  8.  Exod.  xxiii.  17. 

"  Seek  JEHOVAH  and  his  strength, 

"  Seek  his  face  for  ever.  Psalm  cv.  4. 

Where  it  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  IT?  (his  strength)  is  parallel 
and  synonymous  to  V3B  (his  face)  and  signifies  the  ark  of  God  : 
compare  Psalm  Ixxviii.  61,  cxxxii.  8.  They  but  trifle,  who  endea- 
vour to  extort  any  thing  reasonable  from  the  common  reading.  Fur- 
ther, I  am  of  opinion,  that  in  vs.  9th  the  verb  •JNttSm  in  Niphal 
ought  to  be  repeated  :  so  all  the  old  translators  seem  to  have  read  it. 

LOWTH. 

Quid  tamen  in  hac  sententia  desiderari  possit,  non  video :  quae- 
rcntcs  faciem  tuam  sunt  lacobus :  i.  e.  ii  demum  Israelitae  veri,  dig- 
nique  hoc  monte  habentur,  qui  tuam  faciem  quaerunt.  Veteresne, 
quos  citat  noster,  legerint  ap3£  VfiJ  ,  an  cum  non  paucis  interpretum 
Spy"1  elliptice  poni  pro  Deo  lacobi  crediderint,  incertum  est.  Ara- 
bis  certe  et  Aethiopis  nulla  in  variis  lectionibus  Psalmorum  existi- 
mandis  auctoritas  numerusve,  Graeca  interpretantium,  non  Hebraica. 
In  Psalmis  idem  de  Vulgata  versione  plerumque  tenendum,  alibi 
meliore  et  magis  sua.  MICHAELIS. 

[B.  p.  229.]  Interpretation  of  the  historical  Psalms. 
I  wish  most  earnestly,  that  this  observation  of  our  author  might 
be  properly  attended  to  by  the  commentators  upon  the  Psalms  : 
since  whoever  neglects  it  must  of  necessity  fall  into  very  gross  errors. 
There  are  some  who,  attempting  to  explain  the  Psalms  from  the  his- 
torical parts  of  Scripture,  act  as  if  every  occurrence  were  known  to 
them,  and  as  if  nothing  had  happened  during  the  reign  of  David 


420  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVIf. 


which  was  not  committed  to  writing.  This,  however,  considering 
the  extreme  brevity  of  the  sacred  history,  and  the  number  and  mag- 
nitude of  the  facts  which  it  relates,  must  of  course  be  verj  far  from 
the  truth.  The  causes  and  motives  of  many  wars  are  not  at  all  ad- 
verted to,  the  battles  that  are  related  are  few,  and  those  the  princi- 
pal. Who  can  doubt,  though  ever  so  unexperienced  in  military  af- 
fairs, that  many  things  occurred,  which  are  not  mentioned,  between 
the  desertion  of  Jerusalem  by  David,  and  that  famous  battle,  which 
extinguished  the  rebellion  of  Absalom?  The  camp  must  have  been 
frequently  removed,  as  circumstances  varied,  to  places  of  greater 
safety ;  much  trouble  must  have  been  had  in  collecting  the  veteran 
soldiers  from  different  posts,  and  not  a  few  battles  and  skirmishes 
must  have  occurred,  before  the  exiled  king  could  so  far  presume 
upon  the  strength  and  increase  of  his  army  as  to  quit  the  mountains, 
and  try  the  open  field.  This  last  battle  being  fought  on  this  side 
of  Jordan,  in  the  forest  of  Ephraim,  is  it  not  natural  to  suppose,  that 
something  must  have  occurred  to  compel  Absalom,  whose  camp  was 
beyond  Jordan,  to  return  into  Palestine,  properly  so  called  :  possibly 
the  preservation  of  the  royal  city  ?  Or  is  it  possible  to  compare  the 
history  in  2  Sam.  viii.  13,  and  Psalm  Ix.  and  not  perceive,  that 
some  unfortunate  events  must  have  happened  previous  to  the  victo- 
ries over  the  Syrians  and  Idumeans,  and  that  affairs  must  have  been 
unhappily  situated  in. Palestine  itself;  that  even  the  royal  city  must 
have  been  in  danger ;  since  the  Idumeans  penetrated  even  so  far  as 
the  valley  of  Salt,  which  is  scarcely  distant  one  day's  journey  ?  If 
all  these  things  be  omitted  ;  if,  moreover,  in  the  book  of  Samuel 
no  sufficiently  express  mention  is  made  of  the  Assyrians,  with 
whom  David  certainly  waged  war,  Ps.  Ixxxiii.  9,  why  should  we  not 
suppose  that  many  lesser  facts  are  omitted  in  the  history,  to  which 
however  a  poet  might  allude,  as  natural  and  proper  matter  of  ampli- 
fication ?  But  to  return  to  the  point  I  set  out  from,  those  who  will 
not  allow  themselves  to  be  ignorant  of  a  great  part  of  the  Jewish 
history,  will  be  apt  to  explain  more  of  the  Psalms  upon  the  same 
principle,  and  as  relating  to  the  same  facts,  than  they  ought :  whence 
the  poetry  will  appear  tame  and  languid,  abounding  in  words,  but 
with  little  variety  of  description  or  sentiment. 

There  are  commentators  of  another  class,  who  take  inexcusable 
liberties  of  invention,  and  instead  of  resorting  to  the  records  of  the 
ancients,  endeavour  to  supply  facts  from  their  own  ingenuity  :  in 
which  way  some  of  the  biographers  of  David  have  greatly  indulged 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVII.  421 


themselves,  and  particularly  DELANY.  For  example,  in  the  seventh 
chap,  of  the  3d  vol.  he  takes  it  for  granted,  from  Ps.  xxxviii.  and  xli. 
that  at  the  time  when  Absalom  formed  the  rebellion,  David  was  ill 
of  the  small-pox  (a  disease  which  we  cannot  pretend  to  assert  from 
any  historical  proof  to  have  been  known  at  that  period,  and  from 
which  the  king  at  his  time  of  life  could  scarcely  have  recovered)  and 
to  shew  that  nothing  could  exceed  his  rashness  in  inventing,  he  adds, 
that  by  means  of  the  disease  he  lost  the  use  of  his  right  eye  for  some 
time. 

Others  have  recourse  to  mystical  interpretations,  or  those  histori- 
cal passages  which  they  do  not  understand  they  convert  into  pro- 
phecies :  into  none  of  these  errors  would  mankind  have  fallen,  but 
through  the  persuasion,  that  the  whole  history  of  the  Jews  was  mi- 
nutely detailed  to  them,  and  that  there  were  no  circumstances  with 
which  they  were  unacquainted.  MICHAELIS. 

[C.  p.  231.]      PSALM  xxix.  9. 

The  oaks  fire  averted  with  pain  or  tremble:  fiVft  or  J"frn&  is  an 
oak  and  certainly  this  word  frequently  occurs  in  the  plural  mascu- 
line, with  the  insertion  of  \  And  in  this  sense  the  SYR.  has  taken 
it,  who  renders  it  ttn^N  3^721.  For  the  word  y*i  in  Syriac  as  well 
as  P^ebrew,  denotes  motion  or  agitation  of  any  kind ;  nor  is  its 
meaning  confined  to  the  pains  of  childbirth.  See  Isa.  li.  9.  "This 
explanation  of  the  word  Vbllrp  in  the  sense  of  moving  or  shaking, 
is  established  beyond  a  doubt  upon  the  authority  of  the  Arabic  verb 
^n,  to  move  or  shake"  H.  Though  the  word  ttnb^tf  does  not  ap- 
pear in  the  Syriac  Lexicons  to  signify  an  oak,  yet  it  occurs  four 
times  in  this  sense  in  the  Syriac  version,  exactly  answering  to  the 
Hebrew  word  nirK,  2  Sam.  xviii.  9,  10,  14.  as  also  in  this  place. 
The  commom  translations  suppose  this  passage  to  relate  to  the  hinds 
bringing  forth  young  :  which  agrees  very  little  with  the  rest  of  the 
imagery  either  in  nature  or  dignity  :  nor  do  I  feel  myself  persuaded 
even  by  the  reasonings  of  the  learned  Bochart  on  this  subject,  Hie- 
roz.  Part  i.  lib.  iii.  chap.  17.  Whereas  the  oak  struck  with  lightning 
admirably  agrees  with  the  context.  And  Bochart  himself  explains 
the  word  rfrAX  (which  has  been  absurdly  understood  by  the  Maso- 
rites  and  other  commentators  as  relating  to  a  stag)  as  spoken  of  a 
tree  in  a  very  beautiful  explication  of  an  obscure  passage  in  Gen.  xlix. 
21.  LOWTII. 

Lowthianae  interpretation!  obstat  primo,  quod  nomen  rfrtf,  quer- 


422  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVII. 


cus,  sive  terebinthus,  in  plurali  ubique  Q^fi*  dicitur,  nusquam  nibfij 
sive  rnb'W  ;  deinde  quod  tbin  de  pariendo  usurpatur  lesai.  li.  2, 
atque  de  purturiendo  cervarum  lob.  xxxix.  4.  Vnde  recte  nostra 
verba  Chaldaeus  reddidit  tfn^btf  'ptsafc,  et  Hieronymus,  obstetricans 
cervis,  Aquila  (odivovrog,  et  Q,uinta  editio,  pato/ufvou  tKacpovg.  Et 
quum  vates  antea  ipsas  vastissirnas  solitudines  lovae  fragore  concuti 
cecinisset,  subsideret  oratio,  si  arborum,  tempestate  commotarum, 
mtntionem  nunc  subiicerit.  Egregria  contra,  et  minime  vulgari 
poeta  digna  sententia,  animantium  quoque  genera,  lovae  voce  audita, 
terrore  perterrita  ita  contremere,  at  parerent  ante  legitimum  tempus, 
et  ipsa  ea  animalia,  quae  suo  etiara  tempore  aegre  enitantur. 

ROSENMUELLER. 

Conjectural  emendations  of  the  text. 

The  two  notes  which  I  have  copied  from  Lowth  on  this  Lecture, 
(Notes  A  and  C)  afford  a  tolerably  fair  example  of  the  Bishop's 
disposition  to  condemn  the  Masorites  and  alter  the  text,  wherever  he 
finds  a  difficulty.  Several  notes  of  this  kind  I  have  omitted,  and 
these  I  have  retained,  rather  for  the  purpose  of  giving  a  specimen  of 
Lowth's  manner  in  such  cases,  than  from  any  opinion  of  the  cor- 
rectness or  usefulness  of  his  conjectural  criticisms.  The  groundless- 
ness of  his  conjectures  in  these  two  instances  (A  and  C)  is  suffi- 
ciently evinced  by  the  remarks  of  Michaelis  and  Rosenmueller, 
which  immediately  follow  his.  Conjectural  emendations  of  the 
scriptural  text  are  always  suspicious ;  the  result,  for  the  most  part, 
of  ignorance  or  indolence ;  and  accurate  investigation  almost  uni- 
formly shows  them  to  be  wrong,  and  as  absurd  as  they  are  presump- 
tuous. If  the  reader  wishes  for  evidence  of  this  truth  that  will  be 
perfectly  satisfactory,  he  need  only  compare  the  verbal  criticisms  in 
Lowth's  Commentary  on  Isaiah  with  the  more  recent  arid  accurate 
philological  investigations  of  Gesenius. 

The  Latin  versions  of  the  passages  of  Scripture  which  Lowth 
has  introduced  into  these  Lectures,  are  deservedly  classed  with  the 
most  elegant  and  beautiful  specimens  of  translation  that  have  ever 
been  produced.  Yet  they  can  never  be  taken  upon  trust.  They 
must  always  be  compared  with  the  original.  Whenever  he  follows 
his  original,  he  is  admirably  exact  as  well  as  elegant ;  but  when  he 
forsakes  the  text  and  gives  loose  to  conjecture  (as  he  sometimes 
does),  he  ought  not  to  be  trusted.  For  the  sake  of  example,  let  the 
student  compare  his  translation  of  the  first  verses  of  the  ninety-first 


NOTES  ON    LECTURE  XXVIII.  423 

Psalm  (Lect.  XXVI.  p.  217)  with  the  original,  and  with  the  Com- 
mentaries of  Rosenmueller  or  De  Wette.  In  the  original  edition  of 
his  Lectures  he  has  a  note  on  these  verses,  defending  his  own  trans- 
lation, and  severely  censuring  the  Masorites  for  their  punctuation  of 
the  text :  but  every  critic  is  now  convinced  that  the  Masorites  were 
in  the  right,  and  the  Bishop  wrong.  So  it  happens  in  almost  every 
case  of  conjectural  emendation. 

If  Lowth,  then,  with  all  his  genius  and  scholarship,  was  betray- 
ed into  such  errors,  when  he  attempted  to  improve  the  text  of  the 
Bible  by  his  own  conjectures ;  what  can  be  expected  from  others, 
who,  without  his  talents  or  learning,  imitate  him  in  his  daring  spirit 
of  conjecture  ?  It  should  be  remembered,  however,  to  the  honour 
Growth,  that  he  usually  proposes  his  emendations  with  all  the  mod- 
esty and  diffidence  characteristic  of  true  genius ;  that  he  wrote  be- 
fore the  text  of  the  Bible  was  settled,  and  at  a  time  when  great  re- 
sults were  expected  from  the  collations  of  Kennicott ;  that  he  had 
the  ardent  and  adventurous  spirit  of  a  new  discoverer  ;  and  that 
critics,  at  that  period,  had  not  learned  so  well  as  they  have  since, 
that  patient  application  is  a  much  surer,  though  a  more  toilsome  way 
of  coming  at  truth,  than  bold  conjecture,  which  costs  neither  time 
nor  labour.  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVIII. 

[A.  p.  234.]     Song  of  Deborah. 

Antiquissimum  Deborae  imvlxiov  ad  carminis  Pindarici  regulas 
exactum  et  in  Strophas,  Antistrophas  et  Epodas  divisum,  quae  a  tri- 
bus  choris  fuerint  cantatae,  praemissa  carminis  analysi  accuratiore, 
subiunctoque  Commentario,  legitur  in  A.  F.  RVCKERSFELDERI  Syllo- 
ge  Commentatt.  Cap.  V.  p.  53.  seqq.  Cui  iungenda  C.  F.  SCHNVR- 
RERI  in  idem  Carmen  Commentario,  quae  in  eius  Dissertatt.  Philo- 
logico-Criticis  iunctim  editis,  Goth,  et  Amstelaed.  1790,  in  octon. 
exstat  p.  36,  seqq.  ubi  et  plura  aliorum  scripta  sunt  laudata,  quibus 
praestantissima  ode  illustratur.  ROSENMUELLER. 

By  far  the  most  complete  and  satisfactory  exegesis  of  this  sub- 
lime relic  of  antiquity  has  been  given  by  G.  H.  Hollmann,  a  student 
of  Gesenius  at  Halle,  in  an  academical  exercise  published  at  Leip- 
sic  with  the  title  :  Commentarius  Philologico-criticus  in  Carmen 
Deborae,  Judicum  V. 


4*24  NOTES  ON    LECTURE  XXVIII. 

The  spirited  and  elegant  Latin  translation  of  the  Ode,  by  this 
acute  philologian,  is  inserted  here.  S. 

ARGVMENTVM. 

Quatuor  priora  commata  proocmium  carminis  constituunt.  Vates  Deum  laudandum  ease  canit 
ob  salutem  populo  tributum,  regesque  et  principes  ad  epinicium  suum  audiendum  invitat 
(vers.  2,  3,)  Deum  postea  describit  splendida  theophania  populo  suo  auxiliam  ferentem  (vers. 
4,  5.)  His  defuncta  ad  belli  initia  et  causas  recurrit  et  res  gestas  potiores  ad  mortem  usque 
Siserae  poeticis  coloribusexornat,  ita  tatnen,  ut  subinde  Dei  populique  fortis  laudes  immisce- 
at  iisque  orationem  interpellet  (vers.  9 — 12.)  Exponit  igitur  statum  reipublicae  ludaicae 
infelicem,  additis  etiam  publicae  calamitatis  causis  (vers.  7,  8,)  recenset  et  laudat  tribus, 
quae  suo  et  Baraci  monitu  arma  sumserant  (vers.  13,  14,  18,)  taxat  reliquas,  quae  publicae 
saluti  domesticam  praetulerant  (vers.  16,  17,)  pugnaeque  denique  eventus  omnes  ordine  enar- 
rat,  hostium  fortitudinem  et  fugam,  tempestatem  iis  infensam,  Siserae  mortem  millions  ma- 
nu  paratam  (vers.  19 — 27.)  Mutata  deinde  seena  Siserae  matrem  inducit  de  filii  cunctatione 
quiritantem,  mox  solatio  erectam  praedasque  sperantem  (vers.  28 — 30)  ;  in  media  tandem 
oratione  abrumpens  egregia  apostrophe  omnes  Dei  hoste  Siserae  instar  perituros  esse 
praesagit. 

VERSIO  LATINA. 

2.  Quod  imperarunt  imperatores  in  Israel, 
spontaneum  se  praebuit  populus, 
laudate  leliovam  ! 

3.  Audite  reges,  aurem  advertite  principes  ! 
ego  lehovae,  ego  canam, 

psallam  lehovae,  Israelis  Deo. 

4.  lehova,  cum  prodires  e  Seir, 
cum  incederes  ab  agro  Idumaeae 
contremuit  terra,  etiam  coeli  stillarunt, 
etiam  nubes  stillarunt  aquas. 

5.  Montes  contremuerunt  coram  lehova, 
hie  Sinai  coram  lehova,  Israelis  Deo. 

6.  Sarngaris  diebus,  filii  Anath, 
diebus  Israelis  cessabant  viae, 
viaque  publica  incedere  soliti 
occultis  tramitibus  ibant. 

7.  Deerant  duces  in  Israel,  deerant. 
donee  surrexi  ego  Debora, 
surrexi  mater  in  Israel. 

8.  Elegit  (Israel)  Deos  novos, 
turn  oppognarunt  portas  : 

nee  clypeus  apparuit,  nee  hasta 
in  quadraginta  millibus  Israelis. 
6.      Animus  meus  grates  agit  ducibus  Israelis', 
spontaneis  in  populo. 
Laudate  lehovam  ! 

10.      Qui  asinabus  vehimini  candidis, 
qui  stragulis  insidetis, 
qui  inceditis  in  via, 
meditamini  carmen ' 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXVIII.  425 


11.  Ob  iubila  (praedam)  sortientium  inter  haustra, 
ibidem  celebrent  beneficia  lehovae, 
beneficia  in  duces  eius  Israeliticos  ; 

tune  ad  portas  descendat  populus  lehovae. 

12.  Age,  age  Debora, 
age,  age,  cane  carmen  ! 
surge  Barac, 

deduc  captives  tuos,  fili  Abinoam  ! 

13.  Tune  ego  :  "  descendite  residui  nobilium  populi, 
lehova  descende  mihi  cum  heroibus." 

Ex  Ephra'imitis,  quorum  inter  Amalekitas  sedes, 

post  eos  Beniamitae  cum  copiis  eorum  ; 

e  Machiritis  descenderunt  duces, 

e  Sebulonitis  tenentes  sceptrum  praefecti. 

15.  Et  principes  Issaschari  cum  Debora 
et  Issaschar,  praesidium  Baraci, 

in  vallern  se  effuderunt  vestigia  eius  secuti. 

16.  Ad  rivos  Rubenitarum 
magna  ceperunt  animi  consilia ; 

quare  vero  tranquille  sedistis  inter  stabula 
ad  audiendas  fistulas  pastorum  ? 
ad  rivos  Rubenitarum 
magnae  fuerunt  consultationes. 

17.  Gilead  trans  lordanem  tranquille  sedebat ; 
et  Dan  cur  navibus  vacabat  ? 

Ascher  sedebat  in  littore  maris, 
ad  portus  suos  conquiescebat. 

18.  Sebulonis  vero  populos  vilipendit  anirnam  mortique  obtulit 
nee  non  Naphtali  in  agris  montanis. 

19.  Venerunt  reges,  pugnarunt, 
turn  pugnarunt  reges  Canaan 

apud  Taanach,  ad  aquas  Megidduntis ; 
sed  frustum  argenti  non  reportarunt. 

20.  E  coelis  pugnatum  est, 
stellae  ex  orbitis  suis 
pugnarunt  cum  Sisera. 

21.  Torrens  Kischon  abripuit  eos, 
torrens  proeliorum,  torrens  Kischon  : 
conculcabas,  anima  mea,  robustos. 

22.  Tune  (terramj  feriebant  calces  equorum 
ob  festinationes  equitum  eorum. 

23.  "  Exsecramini  Meros,  dixit  angelus  lehovae, 
exsecramini  incolas  eius ; 

quia  non  venerunt  lehovae  auxilio, 
auxilio  lehovae  cum  bellatoribus." 
'J4.     Laudetur  prae  mulieribus  lael, 
uxor  Heberi  Kenitae ; 
prae  mulieribus  in  tentorio  laudetur. 

54 


4xJ(J  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXX. 

25.  Cum  aquam  posceret,  lac  obtulit, 

in  patera  pretiosa  attulit  lac  spissum. 

26.  Manum  extendit  ad  clavura, 
dextram  ad  malleum  operarum, 

et  contudit  Siseram,  conquassavit  eius  caput, 
concussit  et  penetravit  tempora  eius. 

27.  Ad  pedes  eius  collapsus  est,  cecidit,  iacuit 
ad  pedes  eius  collapsus  est,  cecidit, 

ubi  collapsus  est,  ibi  cecidit  peremtus. 

28.  Per  fenestram  prospexit  et  clamavit 
mater  Siserae  per  clathros  : 

"  quare  tardat  currus  eius  venire, 
quare  morantur  gressus  curruum  eius  ?" 

29.  Sapientiores  matronarum  eius  respondebant  ei; 
immo  vero  ipsa  sibi  respondit : 

30.  "  en  !  invenient,  distribuent  praedam, 
puellam,  immo  duas  puellas  unicuique  viro. 
exuvias  vestium  tinctarum  Siserae, 
exuvias  vestium  tinctarum,  versicolorum, 

vestem  tinctam,  duas  versicolores  collo  praedatoris." 

31.  Ita  peribunt  omnes  hostes  tui,  lehova  ! 
sed,  qui  amant  ilium,  erunt 

veluti  sol,  quum  prodit  in  robore  suo. 

[B.  p.  235.]     HABAKKUK  in. 

Muitum  lucis  praestantissimo  huic  carmini  attulit  C.  F.  SCHNVR- 
RER  in  peculiar!  super  eo  Commeritatione  quae  in  eius  Dissertatt. 
Philologico-Criticis  iunctim  editt.  legitur,  p.  342.  seqq. 

ROSENMUELLER. 

[C.  p.  237.]     ISAIAH  XLV. 

An  English  translation  of  this  triumphal  song  of  the  Hebrews, 
by  Professor  Stuart,  may  be  found  in  Porter's  Analysis  of  Rhetori- 
cal Delivery,  (p.  380). 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXX. 

[A.  p.  247.]     Dramatic  Psalms. 

Our  author  has  treated  with  his  usual  modesty  a  very  difficult 
subject :  on  which  those  who  have  been  more  adventurous,  have 
been  led  into  great  errors.  It  is  certain  that  many  of  the  Psalms 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXX. 


427 


are  dramatic,  which  some  commentators  observing,  delighted  with 
their  own  discoveries,  whenever  they  met  with  a  passage  more  diffi- 
cult than  usual,  or  were  able  to  catch  any  new  and  visionary  expla- 
nation, more  agreeable  to  their  theological  notions,  they  have  eager- 
ly resorted  to  the  change  of  the  persons  or  characters,  though  no 
such  change  existed.  Such  are  those  commentators  who  have  fan- 
cied, in  accommodation  to  the  quotation  of  St.  Paul,  Heb.  i.  10,  the 
spirit  and  purpose  of  which  they  did  not  understand,  that  the  former 
part  of  the  ciid  Ps.  to  the  24th  verse :  "  Take  me  not  away  in  the  midst 
of  my  age,"  consisted  entirely  of  a  speech  of  Christ,  and  that  the  re- 
mainder ;  "  as  for  thy  years,  they  endure  throughout  all  generations" 
etc.  was  the  reply  of  God  the  Father.  Whoever  indulges  himself 
in  tlis  mode  of  explication,  may  easily  find  out  any  thing  he  pleases 
in  the  Psalms,  and  with  little  or  no  philological  knowledge,  without 
the  smallest  assistance  from  criticism,  can  give  a  meaning  even  to 
the  most  difficult  or  corrupted  texts  of  Scripture  :  any  meaning  in- 
deed but  the  right  one. 

Our  author  very  justly  suspects,  that  not  a  few  passages  of  the 
dramatic  kind  are  at  present  unknown  :  yet  we  are  not  allowed  to 
suppose  an  ode  of  the  dramatic  kind,  unless  it  appear  so  by  some 
decisive  proof ;  nor  ought  we  to  fly  to  this  discovery  as  a  refuge  for 
our  ignorance.  For,  as  many  passages  may  probably  be  of  a  dra- 
matic kind  which  we  do  not  know  to  be  such,  so,  many  may  be  ac- 
counted dramatic,  which  a  little  more  philological  knowledge,  or  the 
true  reading,  which  antiquity  may  have  obscured,  would  point  out 
to  be  simple  and  regular  compositions.  In  order  to  demonstrate 
how  cautious  commentators  ought  to  be  in  these  respects,  I  shall 
have  recourse  to  one  example,  whence  we  shall  be  able  to  judge 
how  uncertain  many  others  are,  however  they  may  bear  a  face  of 
probability. 

The  second  Psalm  has  been  accounted  one  of  the  principal  of 
the  dramatic  kind,  and  scarcely  any  person  has  doubted  of  its  being 
altogether  dramatic.  If  you  attend  to  some  commentators,  the  holy 
prophet  speaks  in  the  1st  and  2d  verses  ;  in  the  3d  the  rebellious 
princes ;  in  the  4th  and  5th  the  prophet  again  ;  in  the  6th  God  ; 
in  the  7th  and  8th  the  anointed  king  ;  in  the  10th,  llth,  and  12th 
the  holy  prophet.  It  is  very  extraordinary  that  they  should  not  see, 
that  it  is  not  the  rebellious  princes  who  speak  in  the  third  verse, 
but  that  their  words  are  only  referred  to  by  the  prophet,  and  that, 
according  to  the  manner  of  the  Orientals,  without  directly  identify- 


428  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXX. 


ing  the  speaker.  Nothing  is  more  common  in  the  Arabic  poetry, 
than  to  relate  the  actions  and  sentiments  of  particular  persons,  and 
to  annex  their  very  words  without  any  preface,  of  saying  or  he  said, 
etc.  It  does  not  even  appear  that  God  is  introduced  as  a  dramatic 
character,  for  if  so,  what  is  the  use  of  the  words — "  He  shall  speak 
unto  them  in  his  wrath,"  etc.  ?  MIOHAELIS. 

In  illo  psalmos  ad  dramaticam  formam  revocandi  studio  vix  quis- 
quam  longius  progressus  est  I.  C.  C.  Nachtigalio,  Philologo  Halber- 
staderisi,  qui  non  solum  plurimos  singulos  psalmos  vel  in  chores  dis- 
tribuit,  vel  inter  varias  personas,  quas  loquentes  introduci  existima- 
ret,  dispertiit ;  verum  et  ex  psalmis  pluribus  artificiose  digestis  jus- 
turn  componere  drama  conatus  est,  quo  arcae  sacrae  ad  montem 
Sionem  translatio  scenice  repraesentetur.  Cui  hypothesi  exponen- 
dae  peculiarem  dicavit  librum,  duplici  instructum  epigraphe,  una 
hac  :  (Gesange  Davids  und  seiner  Zeitgenossen  nach  der  Zeitfolge 
geordnet  und  neu  bearbeitet  von  I.  C.  C.  NACHTIGAL,  Erster  Band, 
Leipz.  1796),  altera  vero,  argumentum  distinctius  indicante  :  (Zion, 
aeltestes  Drama  aus  der  vorhomerischen  Urwelt).  Legitur  1  Paral. 

XV.  XVI.,  Davidem  expugnata  arce  Sionica  omnes  Israelitas  Hie- 
rosolymarn  convocasse,  ad  lovae  arcam  in  Sionem  montem,  locum  ei 
a  se  praeparatum,  deportandam,  Levitarumque  principibus  mandasse, 
ut  cognatos  suos,  cantores,  musicis  praeficerent  instruments,  nablis, 
citharis  et  tympanis,  qui  concehtum  edentes  laetitiam  agerent.     Turn 
ex  aedibus  Obededomi  arcam  a  Levitis  gestatam,  Davide  et  Israelitis 
senatoribus  copiarumque  ducibus,  ceterisque  Israelitis  omnibus  com- 
itantibus,  cum  clangore  et  buccinae  tubarum  cymbalorumque  sonitu 
agentibus,  et  nablis  citharisque  resonantibus,  solenni  pompa  in  Sio- 
nem deductam  fuisse.     Introducta  area  divina  et  in   tabernaculo, 
quod  ei  David  tetenderat,  collocata,  non  solum  facta  sunt  Deo  sac- 
rificia,  verum  et  decantati  hymni,  qui  lovam,   Israelitarum  Deum, 
celebrarent  atque  laudarent.     Ex  hymnis  illis  unus,  qui   1  Paral. 

XVI.  8 — 36  integer  insertus  legitur,  totus  est  conflatus  ex  Psalmis 
cv.  etxcvi.     De  aliis  hymnis,  qui  ante  arcam  in  tabernaculo  sacrore- 
positam  decantati  essent,  ne   vestigium  quidem.     Decantatos  tamen 
plures  alios  hymnos  fuisse  antequam  ad  tabernaculum  perventum  es- 
set,  ita  firrniter  persuasum  est  Nachtigalio,  ut  adeo  qui  psalmi,   et 
quonam  illi  ordine  cantati  fuerint,  deh'nire  ausus  sit.     Atque  1)  ad 
radices  quidem  montis  Sionici  cantatos  autumat  Psalmos  xcviii.  et 
xcvi ;  2)  in  adscensu   montis  Ps.  Ixviii.  Exod.  xv.  1 — 18.    Ps.  Ixvi. 
cvii.  xlvii.  ;  3)  in  montis  summo  Ps.  cxxxiii. ;  4)  ante  portas  Sionias 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXX.  429 

Ps.  xxiv  ;  5)  in  Sionis  introitu  Ps.  c ;  6)  dum  tabernaculi  atria  ingre- 
derentur,  Ps.  cvii.  cxviii.  1 — 4.  19 — 29 ;  7)  dum  locarent  arcam  sa- 
cram,  Ps.  cxxxii.  8,  9,  13 — 18  ;  8)  post  arcam  repositam,  Ps.  xcix. 
cv.  cvi.  cxiv.  ii.  Ixxv.  Ixxvi.  xcvii.  ix.  x.  1  Sam.  ii.  1 — 10.  Ps.  cxiii. 
xlvi.  xxix.  xciii.  Ixxxvii.  cxxv.  cxxxv.  cxxxvi.  Ixvii.  cxxviii.  1  Chron. 
xvii.  36.  Sed  quam  incerta  coniectura  illi  Psalmi  locis  a  Viro  Doo 
tissimo  ipsis  tributis  assignentur,  nemo  non  videt.  Quid  Psalmos 
xcviii.  et  xcvi.  ad  montis  Sionici  radices,  aut  Psalmum  cxxviii.  monte 
ascenso  cantatos  fuisse  arguit  1  Neque  quid  huiusmodi  argumentis 
destitutis  coniecturis  carminum  intelligentia  iuvetur,  facile  est  intel- 

leCtU.  ROSENMUELLER. 

[B.  p.  253.]     Solomons  Song. 

It  may  seem  a  bold  undertaking  to  contradict  the  opinion  of  all 
the  commentators,  which  has  been  so  long  established,  that  the  prin- 
cipal personages  of  the  Canticles  are  a  bride  and  bridegroom  during 
the  nuptial  week.  As  I  cannot,  however,  reconcile  the  matter  to 
my  mind,  I  shall  briefly  assign  the  reasons  of  my  dissent  from  this 
opinion.  The  first  is,  that  no  direct  mention  is  made,  during  the 
course  of  this  long  poem,  of  the  ceremony  of  marriage;  nor  of  any 
one  of  the  circumstances  which  attend  that  ceremony.  Again,  who 
can  possibly  imagine  a  bridegroom  so  necessitated  to  labour,  as  not 
to  be  able  to  appropriate  a  few  days  in  his  nuptial  week,  to  the  cel- 
ebration of  his  marriage  ;  but  be  compelled  immediately  to  quit  his 
spouse  and  his  friends  for  whole  days,  in  order  to  attend  his  cattle 
in  the  pastures  ?  Nay,  at  this  time  of  festival,  he  even  does  not  re- 
turn at  night,  but  leaves  his  bride,  to  whom  he  appears  so  much  at- 
tached, alone  and  unhappy.  Or  if  such  instances  might  occur 
in  particular  cases,  certainly  they  do  not  afford  a  proper  subject 
for  a  nuptial  song.  At  the  same  time,  the  bride  is  supposed  to 
have  the  care  of  a  vineyard,  and  her  brothers  are  displeased  with 
her  for  having  neglected  it ;  this  is  so  contrary  to  every  idea  of  nup- 
tial festivity,  that  unless  we  could  suppose  it  meant  in  the  way  of 
burlesque,  it  is  impossible  to  conceive  it  to  have  any  relation  to  the 
celebration  of  a  marriage. 

There  is  still  less  reason  to  think,  that  the  poem  relates  to  the 
state  of  the  parties  betrothed  before  marriage  ;  and  there  are  not 
the  smallest  grounds  for  supposing  it  the  description  of  any  clandes- 
tine amour,  since  the  transaction  is  described  as  public  and  legal, 
and  the  consent  of  parents  is  very  plainly  intimated. 


430  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXX. 

It  remains  therefore  to  explain  my  own  sentiments,  and  these 
are,  that  the  chaste  passions  of  conjugal  and  domestic  life  are  de- 
scribed in  this  poem,  and  that  he  has  no  relation  to  the  celebration 
of  nuptials.  It  may  seem  improbable  to  some  readers,  that  conjugal 
and  domestic  life  should  afford  a  subject  for  an  amorous  poem ;  but 
those  readers  have  not  reflected  how  materially  the  manners  of  the 
Orientals  are  different  from  ours.  Domestic  life  among  us  is,  in  gen- 
eral, a  calm  and  settled  state,  void  of  difficulties,  perplexities,  suspi- 
cions, and  intrigues ;  and  a  state  like  this  rarely  affords  matter  for 
such  a  poem.  But  in  the  East,  from  the  nature  of  polygamy,  that 
state  admits  more  of  the  perplexities,  jealousies,  plots,  and  artifices 
of  love  ;  the  scene  is  more  varied,  there  is  more  of  novelty,  and  con- 
sequently, greater  scope  for  invention  and  fancy. 

There  is  another  circumstance  which  militates  against  the  con- 
jecture of  Bossuet,  namely,  that  though  the  nuptial  banquet  contin- 
ues for  seven  days,  no  time  appears  in  this  poem  appropriated  to  the 
banquet  itself.  Either  the  bride  and  bridegroom  are  separated  from, 
and  in  quest  of  each  other,  or  they  are  enjoying  a  wished-for  soli- 
tude ;  and  whenever  they  converse  with  the  virgins,  it  is  in  the 
street  or  in  the  field,  and  never  with  the  guests,  or  at  a  banquet. 

MICIIAELIS. 

Hoc  si  ita  est,  mirum,primae  noctis  nulla  cani  gaudia,  non  pom- 
pam  comitantium  :  nuspiam  adclamationes,  cantica,  bona  verba,  au- 
diri  convivarum,ereptam  virginitatem,  cuius  ad  eos,  indicium  deferri 
solet,  more  Orientali  gratulantium.  Omissum  in  carmine,  quod  pri- 
mas  in  illo  et  praecipuas  facere  partes  debuisset.  MICHAELIS. 

Argumentum  Cantico  Canticorum  praebere  nuptias  Salomonis, 
cuius  sponsa  fuerit  Pharaonis  filia,  vetus  quidem  opinio  est,  Grotio 
quoque,  aliisque  interpretibus  baud  paucis  probata,  sed  cui  plura  in 
ipso  carmine  obvia  adversantur,  quae  neque  Salomoni,  regi,  neque 
eius  sponsae,  filiae  Pharaonis,  conveniunt.  Ita,  v.  c.  Pharaonis, 
magni  regis,  filia  non  erat  vineae  aut  ovium  custos,  I.  6,  8,  nee  soror 
Salomonis,  IV.  9.  Neque  etiam  ilia  per  plat eas  noctu  discurrilt  III. 
1 ,  2,  aut  a  vigilibus  urbis  percussa,  vulnerata  et  spoliata  fuit,  V.  7. 
Praeterea  ut  Salomonem,  aut  alium  poetam  ipsi  aequalem,  huius 
carminis  auctorem  statuamus,  nullo  modo  admittit  illius  sermo  et  sty- 
lus aperte  chaldaizans,  adeoque  scriptorem  Esrae  et  Nehemiae  ae- 
qualem arguens.  Vid.  I.  G.  Eichhornii  Isagogen  in  V.  T.  P.  Ill 
§  647,  p.  531,  seq.  ed.  sec.  ROSENMUELLER. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  431 

NOTES   ON  LECTURE   XXXI. 

[A.  p.  257.]     ISAIAH  LXII.  5. 

The  ambiguity  of  the  word  which  I  translate  "  conditor  tuus," 
has  created  inextricable  difficulties  to  all  the  translators  and  com- 
mentators, both  ancient  and  modern.  The  LXX.  have  mistaken  it, 
and  the  Masorites  have  mispointed  it.  Their  authority  has  conse- 
crated the  error,  and  almost  established  it.  Nothing  however  ap- 
pears clearer  to  me,  than  that  this  word  ^31  is  not  the  plural  of  the 
noun  ]a  (a  son,)  but  of  the  participle  benoni  of  the  verb  lrr21  (to  build,) 
and  is  parallel  and  synonymous  to  thy  God  in  the  alternate  mem- 
ber. Compare  the  above  quoted  passage  of  Tsaiah,  where  also  mark 
that  husbands  and  creators  occur  in  the  plural,  with  the  same  rela- 
tion to  the  same  word.  By  this  explanation,  every  offensive  and  in- 
delicate idea  is  taken  away  from  the  passage,  which  I  do  not  wonder 
proved  an  impediment  in  the  way  of  the  commentators.  LOWTH. 

It  is  a  serious  objection  against  the  proposed  emendation  of  Lowth, 
that  the  verb  ^ib^i"1  is  plural ;  but  if  it  agrees  with  "p25  as  pluralis 
excellentiac,  the  usual  grammatical  construction  would  require  the 
singular  number  of  the  verb.  (See  Stuart's  Heb.  Gram.  p.  167,  3d 
edit.)  That  the  Bishop,  in  this  case  as  in  many  others,  has  condem- 
ned the  Masorites  without  reason,  will  appear  from  the  following 
remarks.  S. 

Permiscentur  les.  Ixii.  5.  duae  metaphorae,  quod  in  V.  T. 
hand  rarum.  Incolae  civitatis,  quatenus  in  civitate  sati  editique 
sunt,  censentur  civitatem  habere  matrem,  atque  adeo  eius  esse  Jilii  ; 
vid.  les.  li.  18.  Rursus  iidem  incolae,  quatenus  civitatem  habent, 
occupant,  possident  suae  potestati  obnoxiam  eidemque  foedere  de- 
vincti  sunt,  vocantur  -py  "^a,  habentes  urbem,  i.  e.  cives  urbis, 
ut  los.  xxiv.  11.  irrp  -^$5  incolae,  (habentes)  lerichuniis  ;  nee 
non  ludic.  ix,  46.  »5iZ)  ^att  ^ra,  habentes  turrim  Sichcmiti- 
cam,  incolae,  cives.  Ex  ipsa  hac  phrasi  sumptum  emblema  les.  Ixii. 
5.  usurpatum,  et  ad  earn  formatum.  Rursus,  ut  civitates  respectu 
eorum,  qui  in  iis  nascuntur,  gaudent  dici  moires ;  sic  eaedam  res- 
pectu libertatis,  ornatus,  formae,  veniunt  nomine  virginium  nibina. 
Vid.  lesa.  xxxvii.  22.  xlvii.  1.  Reges  et  principes,  qui  id  agunt,  ut 
civitatis  regimen  et  praefecturam  sibi  vindicent,  tales  virgines  cen- 
sentur ambire.  Quibus  observatis  apparet,  vatem,  ut  significant,  ip- 
sos  Hierosolymae  restaurandae  cives  eius  patronos  et  vindices  fore, 
xecte  dicere  potuisse  :  Sicut  adolescens  maritat  sibi  virginem,  sic  ma- 


NOTES  ON    LECTURE    XXXI. 


ritabunt  se  tibi  Jilii  tui,  quomodo,  retento  -^22,  locos  lesa.  Ixii.  5. 
vertendus,  i.  e.  habebis  reges  et  principes  benignos  propriae  gentis, 
non  tyrannos  (oppositum  les.  xxvi.  13.  lova,  Dcus  nostcr,  alii  dom- 
ini  in^S'Si  possident  nos).  Pertinent  haec  ad  declarationem  com- 
matis  superioris  4,  ubi  civitas  Hierosolyrnitana  dicitur  nuncupanda 
maritata.  ROSENMUELLER. 


[B.  p.  257.]     Freedom  of  Oriental  imagery. 

That  diversity  of  mannners,  that  delicacy  of  conversation,  which 
is  observed  by  some  nations,  and  the  coarseness  of  others,  results 
chiefly  from  the  degree  of  intercourse  which  subsists  between  the  sex- 
es. In  countries  where  the  intercourse  is  free  and  familiar,  where 
the  sexes  meet  commonly  in  mixed  companies,  they  accustom  them- 
selves to  a  greater  modesty  and  delicacy,  in  their  conversation  which 
modesty  is  easily  transferred  to  their  composition.  Such  a  people,  there- 
fore, with  whom  entertainments  would  seem  languid  and  dull  without 
the  company  of  young  women,  though  perhaps  not  free  from  licentious- 
ness of  manners,  will  yet  be  chaste  and  delicate  in  their  expressions. 
Hence  arises,  in  a  great  degree,  that  extreme  delicacy  in  the  peo- 
ple of  modern  Europe,  which  can  scarcely  bear  some  of  the  passa- 
ges in  Virgil,  and  the  chastest  of  the  ancient  poets.  The  case  is 
quite  different  with  the  people  of  the  East  :  for  the  men  having 
scarcely  any  society  with  the  unmarried  women,  or  with  the  wives 
of  others,  converse  together  without  being  restrained  by  the  blushes 
of  females,  or  with  their  own  wives,  whom  they  regard  in  a  very  in- 
ferior light,  and  consequently  treat  with  all  the  insolence  of  famili- 
arity ;  the  women  also  converse  chiefly  with  each  other  ;  and  as  they 
are  similarly  situated,  are  probably  not  less  licentious.  It  is  not  ex- 
traordinary, therefore,  if  greater  freedom  of  speech  should  prevail  in 
those  countries,  and  if  this,  when  transferred  into  their  poetry,  should 
be  found  to  offend  our  ears,  which  are  accustomed  to  so  much  great- 
er delicacy  in  conversation.  MICHAELIS. 

(Compare  Lect.  VI.  Note  A). 

[C.  p.  258.]     Allegorical  interpretation  of  Solomon's  Song. 

On  the  question,  whether  the  Song  of  Solomon  be  an  allegory  ? 
after  the  very  able  discussion  of  it  given  by  Lowth  in  the  text,  I  will 
here  insert  the  arguments  of  Michaelis  for  the  negative,  and  those  of 
Rosenmueller  for  the  affirmative,  and  leave  the  reader  to  decide  for 
himself.  S. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  433 

Our  author  has  treated  this  very  difficult  subject  with  more  mod- 
esty and  more  address  than  any  of  the  commentators ;  and  indeed 
has  said  all  that  could  be  said,  exclusive  of  the  theological  arguments, 
in  favour  of  the  allegorical  sense.  I  question,  however,  whether  he 
will  be  able  to  remove  all  doubt  from  the  mind  of  a  cool  and  atten- 
tive reader  ;  the  reasons  of  my  scepticism  on  this  matter,  I  will,  as  a 
person  earnestly  desirous  of  the  truth,  endeavour  briefly  to  explain  ; 
and  I  shall  hold  myself  greatly  indebted  to  that  man,  who  shall,  up- 
on rational  principles,  undertake  to  remove  my  scruples. 

With  regard  to  the  authority  of  the  ancient  Christian  church,  in 
a  question  merely  depending  upon  the  exposition  of  a  passage  in 
Scripture,  I  hold  it  of  very  little  importance,  not  only  because  the 
exposition  of  Scripture  does  not  depend  upon  human  authority,  but 
because  the  fathers,  as  well  on  account  of  their  ignorance  of  the 
Hebrew  language,  as  of  the  principles  of  polite  literature  in  general, 
were  very  inadequate  to  the  subject,  eagerly  pursuing  certain  mysti- 
cal meanings,  even  with  respect  to  the  clearest  passages,  in  the  ex- 
planation of  which  the  most  enlightened  of  the  modern  commenta- 
tors have  refuted  them.  The  time  of  the  fathers  was  so  very  distant 
from  the  period  when  this  poem  was  composed,  that  it  is  impossible 
they  should  have  been  possessed  of  any  certain  tradition  concerning 
its  purport  and  meaning.  I  should  entertain  very  different  senti- 
ments, if  I  could  find  any  mention  of  the  Song  of  Songs  in  the  New 
Testament ;  but,  on  the  most  diligent  examination,  I  have  not  been 
able  to  discern  the  slightest  allusion  to  that  poem. 

The  authority  of  the  synagogue  is  of  still  less  importance  in  my 
eyes,  since  in  other  respects  we  have  found  it  so  little  deserving  of 
confidence  in  its  attempts  at  expounding  the  Scriptures.  Such  of 
the  Jewish  writers  as  have  treated  of  the  Canticles,  lived  so  many 
ages  after  the  time  of  Solomon,  after  the  total  destruction  of  the  com- 
monwealth and  literature  of  the  Hebrews,  that  they  knew  no  more 
of  the  matter  than  ourselves. 

With  regard  to  the  analogy  of  other  poems,  all  that  can  be  said 
is,  that  it  was  indeed  possible  enough  for  Solomon  to  celebrate  the 
Divine  love  in  terms  analogous  to  those  descriptive  of  the  human  af- 
fections :  but  it  is  impossible  to  determine  by  that  analogy  what  kind 
of  love  he  intended  to  be  the  subject  of  this  poem.  Shall  we  pre- 
tend to  say,  that  his  attention  was  wholly  employed  upon  sacred  poe- 
try, and  that  he  never  celebrated  in  verse  any  of  the  human  affec- 
tions ?  Or,  because 'some  of  the  Hebrew  poems  celebrate  th'e  Di- 
55 


434  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI. 

vine  goodness  in  terms  expressive  of  the  human  passions,  does  it  fol- 
low, that  on  no  occasion  those  terms  are  to  be  taken  in  their  literal 
sense  ? 

Our  author  has  prudently  declined  examining  the  arguments 
which  are  usually  taken  from  the  poem  itself,  and  from  its  internal 
structure,  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  the  allegory.  It  is  indeed 
very  improbable,  that  in  so  long  a  poem,  if  it  were  really  allegorical, 
no  vestiges,  no  intimation  should  be  found  to  direct  us  to  apply  it  to 
the  Divine  love  ;  nothing,  which  does  not  most  clearly  relate  to  the 
human  passion  :  and  that  too,  considering  it  as  the  production  of  one 
of  the  Hebrew  writers,  who  are  accustomed  to  mix  the  literal  sense 
with  the  allegorical  in  almost  all  their  compositions  of  this  kind.  In 
so  longf  an  allegory  one  should  also  expect  a  deeper  moral  than  usu- 
al, and  one  not  generally  obvious,  to  be  indicated  :  but  no  sober  com- 
mentator has  ever  been  able  to  deduce  from  the  Canticles  any  other 
than  this  trite  sentiment,  that  God  loves  his  church,  and  is  beloved 
by  it.  That  this  simple  sentiment  should  be  treated  so  prolixly,  and 
nothing  more  distinctly  revealed  concerning  it,  who  can  credit,  but 
upon  the  soundest  basis  of  argument  or  proof?  But  in  support  of  it 
we  have  only  the  bare  position,  that  the  Hebrew  writers  sometimes 
make  use  of  allegorical  expressions  to  denote  the  Divine  love. 

I  am  aware  of  the  objections  which  are  started  by  those  who  rest 
the  matter  upon  theological  arguments,  though  I  cannot  find  that 
these  are  of  great  weight  or  utility  in  the  present  debate  :  for  they 
seem  rather  calculated  to  silence  than  convince.  They  assert,  that 
though  the  book  has  never  been  quoted  by  Christ  or  his  apostles,  it 
was  yet  received  into  the  Sacred  Canon,  and  is  therefore  to  be  ac- 
counted of  Divine  original :  and  that  there  does  not  appear  any  thing 
in  it  divine,  or  worthy  of  sacred  inspiration,  unless  it  be  supposed  to 
contain  the  mystery  of  the  Divine  love.  Lest,  however,  they  should 
seem  to  have  proved  too  much,  and  lest  they  should  dismiss  the  read- 
er prepossessed  with  some  doubts  concerning  the  divine  authority  of 
the  book,  I  will  venture  to  remind  these  profound  reasoners,  that  the 
chaste  and  conjugal  affections,  so  carefully  implanted  by  the  Deity  in 
the  human  heart,  and  upon  which  so  great  a  portion  of  human  happi- 
ness depends,  are  not  unworthy  of  a  muse  fraught  even  with  Divine 
inspiration.  Only  let  us  suppose,  contrary  to  the  general  opinion 
concerning  the  Canticles,  that  the  affection  which  is  described  in 
this  poem,  is  not  that  of  lovers  previous  to  their  nuptials,  but  the  at- 
tachment of  two  delicate  persons,  who  have  be$n  long  united  in  the 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  435 

sacred  bond ;  can  we  suppose  such  happiness  unworthy  of  being  re- 
commended as  a  pattern  to  mankind,  and  of  being  celebrated  as  a 
subject  of  gratitude  to  the  great  Author  of  happiness  ?  This  is  indeed 
a  branch  of  morals  which  may  be  treated  in  a  more  artificial  and  phi- 
losophical manner ;  and  such  a  manner  will  perhaps  be  more  con- 
vincing to  the  understanding,  but  will  never  affect  the  heart  with 
such  tender  sentiments  as  the  Song  of  Solomon  ;  in  which  there  ex- 
ists all  the  fervour  of  passion,  with  the  utmost  chastity  of  expression, 
and  with  that  delicacy  and  reserve,  which  is  ever  necessary  to  the 
life  and  preservation  of  conjugal  love.  Let  us  remember,  moreover, 
that  Solomon,  in  his  Proverbs,  has  not  disdained  very  minutely  to 
describe  the  felicities  and  infelicities  of  the  conjugal  state. 

MICHAELIS. 

Carmine  Salomoneo  humanos  amores  cani,  minime  fert  V.  T. 
librorum  universa  indoles  et  ratio.  Sacri  enim  sunt  et  habentur  is- 
ti  libri,  eoque  nomine  spectant  vel  res  divinas  et  cultum  divinum, 
vel  necessitudinem,  quae  Deo  cum  populo  suo  intercedit,  quo  et  li- 
bri historici  sunt  referendi,  vel  institutionem  vitae  morumque  disci- 
plinam.  Inter  tales  gravissimi  sanctissimique  argumenti  libros  rela- 
tum  esse  mere  amatorium  carmen,  in  quo  nulla  plane  Dei  ratio  habi- 
ta,talique  carmini  praestantissimi  nomen  inditum  fuisse,mihi  quidem 
numquam  persuadebitur.  Sed  insunt  carmini  ipsi  baud  pauca,  quae 
nos  ad  sensum  allegoricum  ducunt.  Primo  enim  duarum  persona- 
rum,  quae  in  hoc  dramate  primas  agunt,  alteram,  amatam,  esse  col- 
lective intelligendam,  statim  carminis  initio  innuitur,  I.  4,  ubi  una 
eademque  persona  de  se  ipsa  in  singulari  et  plurali  promiscue  lo- 
quens  inducitur  :  Trahe  me  post  te :  curremus.  Introducet  me  rez 
in  sua  conclavia.  Exsultabimus ,  de  te  laetantes.  Recolimus  amo- 
res tuos  vino  praestantiores.  Additurque  :  probi  te  amant.  Dein- 
de  in  hoc  carmine  eiusmodi  occurrunt,  quae  proprie  accepta  ab  Ori- 
entalium  omnium  moribus,  imo  ab  omni  veri  specie  ita  abhorrent,  ut 
nulli  poetae  in  mentem  venire  potuerit,  talia  tanquam  vere  gesta  ca- 
nere.  Inauditum  prorsus,  et  plane  novo  more,  ut  puella  a  germanis 
sibi  iratis  vinearum  custos  statuatur,  quae  suara  ipsius  vineam  non 
custodiisse  queritur,  I.  6  ;  ut  eadem  amatum  quaerens  noctu  per  vi- 
cos  plateasque  vagetur,  III.  1 — 3,  illumque  in  matris  domum  et  cubi- 
culum  introducere  cupiat,  III.  4,  VIII.  2 ;  quam  vero  vagantem  cus- 
todes  urbis  nacti  verberant  vulnerantque,  V.  7.  Q,uis  unquam  puel- 
lam  cumfmni  columna  e  deserto  ascendcnte  comparatam  legit,  ut  III. 
6  ?  Nee  minus  nuQudolov  illud,  quod  amata  IV.  6,  ex  Amani  ver 


436  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI. 

tice,  ex  Seniris  et  Hermonis  vertice,  ex  leonum  lustris,  et  tigrium 
montibus  accitur.  dime  enim  in  proxima  nota  Michaelis  afferet 
ad  defendendum  ilium  locum  proprio  sensu  acceptum  nemini  fa- 
cile sufficiant.  Istis  igitur  ex  ipso  carmine  desurntis  argumen- 
tis,  qualia  supra  Michaelis  postulabat,  pro  repudiando  sensu  pro- 
prio, si  addis,  quae  Lowthus  p.  254,  seqg.  edit,  kuius,  ex  parabolicae 
dictionis  analogia  pro  stabiliendo  sensu  allegorico  ita  disputavit,  ut 
fundamentum  et  rationem  allegoriae  in  Cantico  Canticorum  reg- 
nantis  explicaret,  dilueretque  offensiones  ex  imaginis  indignitate 
exortas,  auctoritate  sacrorum  scriptorum  ferme  omnium  cum  Vete- 
ris  turn  JNovi  Testamenti ;  nulla,  credo,  idonea  caussa  restet,  cur 
dubites,  cani  poemate  illo,  quod  Salomonis  praestantissimum  carmen 
inscribitur,  mutuos  lovae  et  populi  a  se  dilecti  eiquejiddis  amorcs, 
sub  amoris,  quo  vir  et  femina  invicem  flagrant,  ita  continuata  allego- 
ria,  ut  amantium  desiderium,  ardor,  sollicitudo,  cumque  his  coniunc- 
tae  perturbationes  vividissimis  coloribus  repraesententur.  Recte 
igitur  larchi  observat,  induci  hoc  carmine  populum  Israeliticum  in 
exilio  recordatum  pristinum  Dei  erga  se  amorem,  quo  motus  ille  ip- 
sum  prae  ceteris  populis  peculium  sibi  elegerat,  maximisque  benefi- 
ciis  ornaverat.  Repudiatum  vero,  ob  multa  commissa  maleficia,  iam 
erroris  poenitentia  ductum  ita  apud  se  cogitare  :  rcfcrum  me  ad  mo- 
ritum  meum  priorem  ;  nam  melius  tune  mecum  agebatur,  quam  nunc 
(Hos.  ii.  7,  al.  9).  "  Personam,"  inquit,  "  gens  Israelitica  gerit  mu- 
lieris,  quae  divortio  facto  iterum  mariti  sui  desideriotenetur,  dilecto- 
que  iungere  se  cupit,  in  memoriam  revocans  adolescentiae  suae  amo- 
rem, et  defectionem  suam  confitens.  Dilectus  vero,  illius  sollicitu- 
dine  ipse  dolore  correptus,  meminit  collata  in  illam  iuvenem  sponsam- 
que  beneficia  atque  amorem  ( Jer.  ii.  2),  inque  memoriam  revocat  de- 
corem  pulchritudinis  eius,  et  recte  beneque  ab  ea  facta,  per  quae  ip- 
se eidem  forti  amore  devinctus  est  Testatur  igitur,  se  illam  non  li- 
benti  animo  afflixisse,  nee  repudium  ei  perpetuum  dixisse,  sed  earn 
suam  uxorem  adhuc  esse,  ipsumque  eius  maritum,  qui  ad  earn  sit  re- 
diturus."  Q,uae  quum  nobis  verissime  dicta  videantur,  nos  tarn  lon- 
ge  absumus  a  vituperando  Chaldaeo  interprete,  qui  hoc  carmen  par- 
tim  exponit  de  veteribus  Dei  in  populum  Israeliticum  collatis  benefi- 
ciis,  inde  ab  Abrahami  temporibus,  partim  de  illis,  quae  futura  ali- 
quando  sperant  Hebraei,  cum  res  eorum  a  divino  illo  rege  e  stirpe 
Davidica  oriundo  restituta  fuerit ;  ut  in  carmine  difficili  explicando 
ilium  magis  ducem  sequendum  arbitremur,  quam  nostrae  aetatis  in- 
terpretes,  qui  hocce  poema  tanquam  Anacreonticum  aliquod  aut  Ca- 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  437 

tullianum  carmen  tractantes  in  eo  exponendo  fere  lasciviunt.  duod 
tamen  non  ita  intelligi  velim,  quasi  Chaldaei  interpretatio  per  omnia 
sit  temere  adoptanda.  Indagandae  sunt  atque  examinandae  rationes, 
quibus  sua  loci  cuiusque  explicatio  nitatur,  quae  non  nisi  illis  proba- 
bilibus  repertis  est  sequenda.  duod  ut  exemplo  illustremus,  locum 
I.  6.  Ne  adspiciatis  me,  quodfusca  sum,  quoniam  me  sol  adspexit  : 
mei  germani  mihi  irati  me  vinearum  cvstodcib  statuerent,  quae  meam 
ipsius  vincam  non  custodivi,  Chaldaeus  hoc  modo  exponit :  Dicit 
coktus  Israel  coram  populis  :  Ne  despiciatis  me,  quod  nigrior  sim  vo- 
bis,  quoniam  fed  secundum  opera  vestra,  et  adoravi  solem  et  lunam ; 
namfalsi  prophctae  effeccrunt,  ut  lehovae  ira  in  me  ingravescent  et 
docuerunt  me  sinmlacris  vestris  scrvire,  inque  vestris  statutis  ambu- 
lare ;  Domino  vero  aeterno,  qui  est  Deus  meus,  non  servivi,  ct  in  eius 
statutis  non  ambulavi,  ncc  observavi  praeccpta  ct  leges  eius.  Ad 
quam  interpretationem  recte  diiudicandam  ante  omnia  est  observan- 
dum,fliabus  Hicrosolymne,  Crd^?  nto  (vs.  5),  quas  alloquitur 
sponsa,  id  est,  gens  Israelitica,  intelligi  gentes  alias,  Hebraeae  ali- 
quando  aetate  aurea  ita  sociandas,  ut  civitas  Hierosolymitana  omni- 
um futura  sit  caput  et  metropolis,  iuxta  illud  Ezechielis  xvi.  61.  Te 
(ad  populum  Israeliticum  sermo  dirigitur)  tuos  recordantem  mores pu- 
debit  cum  arcipics  sorore*  tuos  (^"nTlM),  turn  te  grandiores,  turn 
minores  (i.  e.  gentes  alias),  quas  ego  tibi  Jilias  dabo  (^r?r)N  "^Fin" 
DTDib  *]b).  Hinc  est,  quod  Chaldaeus  suae  huius  versus  interpre- 
tationi  praemisit :  Dixit  roetus  Israel  coram  populis.  lam  expenda- 
mus  versus  6,  singulas  dictiones.  ^N^ft-^N  Ne  adspiciatis  me, 
scil.  cum  contemtu,  ut  lob.  xli.  26,  de  Leviathane  :  na^  ~  b3  "  MN 
n$.^  Omne  datum,  superbum,  despicit.  Recte  igitur  nostra  ver- 
ba  Chaldaeus  vertit :  ^n^  ]1TSn  Nb,  ne  contemnatis  me.  Sequitur 
in  Hebraeo:  n^irnrTtp  "*3N*43  Quod  ego  adeo  sum  nigra  (geminatio 
namque  literarum  radicalium  intendit  significationem)  vid.  BOCHAR- 
TI-  Hieroz.  P.  II.  L.  V.  C.  VI.  T.  III.  p.  613,  edit.  Lips.  Dixerat 
iam  antea  (vs.  5).  se  esse  nigram  sicut  Kedaritarum  s.  Arabum  ten- 
toria  ("Tij5  "IV.5^-S?  *-$''  ST^^n'«2J).  Nigrore  autem  conditio  miseva 
et  afflicta  designatur,  ut  Thren.  IV.  8,  finNft  litli»73  =]a?rt.  O6- 
scurata  prae  nigrore  forma  eorum  (procerum  urbis  Hierosolymita- 
nae).  Et  ibid.  V.  10.  115333  "l^rnS  131^  Cutes  nostrae  instar 
fornacis  atratae  sunt  proptcr  adustiones  famis.  lob.  xxx.  28, 
r!72h  fribs  "'JTi^n  inp  Ater,  moerens,  incedo  non  a  sole  adustus, 
nee  tamen  sol  me  denigravit.  Nostra  vero  nigroris  sui  causam  reddit 
hanc  :  'i5D.i9n  Xr.SJ^a?,  quod  adspexit  me  fulgidis  suis  radiis  sol,  quo 


438  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI. 


intelliguntur  miseriae  et  calamitates,  quibuscum  Hebraeis  exsulanti- 
bus  extra  patriam  terram  conflictandum  erat,  uti  contra  de  illis  libe- 
randis  et  in  statum  feliciorum  restituendis  lesai.  xlix.  10,  dicitur  : 
Non  esurient,  neque  sitient,'^72u']  Z-\V  Btgrfil*)*  necferiet  eos  aestus 
et  sol,  quoniam  qui  eorum  misertus  fuerit,  praeerit  eis,  eosquc  ad 
aquae  scaturigines  ducet.  Nee  non  Ps.  cxxi.  6,  Ji33''~Kb  '£73  ton  t373^ 
Interdiu  sot  nonferiet  te,  neque  noctu  luna.  Q,uum  vero  malis  istis 
tolerandis  meritas  Hebraei  persolverint  poenas  Deo,  a  cuius  cultu  et 
observantia  abduci  se  malis  suasoribus  obsequuti  passi  essent,  poeta 
Hebraeus,  vel  potius,  quam  is  loquentum  inducit,  sponsa,  i.  e.  popu- 
lus  Hebraeus,  haec  addit :  1V3-!Hh3  ")72N  ^:3  Filii  matris  meae,  qui 
eandem  mecum  genitricem,  etsi  non  eundem  genitorem  habent,/r#- 
tres  mei  ira  in  me  accensi  sunt.  Intelliguntur  impii  inter  Hebraeos, 
qui  lovae  cultores  oderunt,  de  quibus  lesai.  Ixvi.  B^hfij  l"^** 
•'ttUJ  ]?»*:  fiD^stt  C^NSto  Prates  vestri,  osorcs  vestri,  qui  vos  prop- 
ter  nomen  meum  vexant,  dictitant  (per  ludibrium)  :  adjiciatur  lova 
gloria,  ut  vcstrum  videamus  gaudium  !  Sed  eos  pudebit.  Alluditur 
simul  ad  Ps.  Ixix.  8,  9.  Tua  caussa,  lova  !  infamiam  sustineo,fa- 
ciem  ignominia  tectam  habens.  'vaN  ">:Sb  "^.531  "'hNb  ^^^i  '^t'la 
Alienus  habeor  meis  fratribus,  et  extraneus  eadem  mecum  matre  natis. 
Cluod  tamen  cum  vexationibus,  turn  persuasionibus  victi  plures  lo- 
vae cultores  ad  deorum  peregrinorum  cultum,  sive  polytheismum, 
abduci  sese  passi  essent,  hisce  innuitur  verbis :  MHt33  ^330 to 
^FHD:  NV  ^«P  *'0m\*  B^^SriT^,  posuerunt,  s.  fecerunt  me  talem 
quae  custodirct,  coleret,  vineas  plures  et  alienas,  vincam  vero,  quae 
jnihi,  propriam  rneam  vineam  provinciam  mihi  demandatam,  non  cus- 
todivi,  i.  e.  eo  me  adegerunt,  ut  plurium  peregrinorum  deorum  relig- 
iones  sequerer,  relicto  patrio  deo,  neglectisque  eius  institutis :  Hunc 
ipsum  sensum,  qui  solus  orationis  seriei  carminisque  consilio  est  con- 
gruus,  Chaldaeus  optime  expressit  verbis  superius  adductis.  Plura 
de  Cantici  Canticorum  interpretatione  disputavimus  in  Commentati- 
one  vernacule  scripta,  Ueber  des  HoJien  Liedes  Sinn  und  Ausle- 
gung  in  den  Analekten  fuer  das  Stud,  dcr  exeget.  und  systemat. 
Theologie,  a  Keilio  et  Tzschirnero,  VV.  SS.  RR.  editis,  P.  III.  p. 
138,  seqq.  ROSENMUELLER. 

Mystical  poetry  of  the  Persians. 

What  CHARDIN  relates  of  the  Persian  poetry,  may  perhaps  not  be 
unworthy  of  the  reader's  notice  in  this  place.  "  Debauchery  and 
licentiousness,"  says  he,  "  are  the  common  topics  of  these  composi- 
tions ;  but  I  must  not  omit  remarking,  that  the  most  serious  of  their 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  439 

poets  treat  of  the  sublimest  mysteries  of  theology,  under  the  most  li- 
centious language,  in  the  way  of  allegory,  as  Afez  in  his  Kasel." 
Voyage  de  CHARDIN,  4to.  Tom.  ii.  cap.  xiv.  LOWTH. 

(Compare  Lect.  XI.  Note  D.) 

Ceterum  de  arcano  sensu,  quern  Hafizi  (J^Uv^-,)  aliorumque, 
qui  eum  sunt  imitati,  poematibus  inesse  perhibent,  pluribus  disseruit 
Guil.  lones  et  in  Poeseos  Asiaticae  Commcntariis,  (P.  III.  Cap.  IX., 
p.  181.  edit.  Lips.),  et  in  peculiari  Commentatione  super  Persarum 
atque  Indorumpoesi  mystica,({uae  legitur  tarn  in  Societatis  Asiaticae, 
quae  Calcuttae  floret,  Commentariis,  Asiatick  Researches  inscriptis, 
(Vol.  III.  p.  353  seqq.  edit.  London,  in  octon.  quam  in  Jonesii  Operi- 
bus  iunctim  editis,  Vol.  I.  p.  445  seqq.)  De  Hafizi  poesi  typica  egit 
quoque  Otm.  Frank  in  libro,  cui  epigraphe  :  de  Persidis  lingua  etge- 
nio  Commentationes  phaosophi  coper  sicae  (Norimberg.  1809,8,  p.  107. 
seq.)  Mysticae  illius  theologiae  placita,quae  in  suis  carminibus  iucun- 
dissimis  imaginibus  involuta  et  exornata  cecinit  Hafiz,  pluribus  ex- 
posuit  Herbelotus  in  Bibliotheca  Orientals  sub  voc.  Eschk  Allah 
&XJ)  OU*XC  i.  e.  amor  Dei,  cuius  quinque  gradus  statuunt  Mystici 


Mohammedanorum  :  1)  &A^.  seu  &ASETLC  amiciam  s.  dilectionem,  2) 

5..°  ^  5     '  c  t 

amorcm,  3)   O&  desiderium,  4)   O'V-AJCiJ^      desiderium 


flagrans,5)  ^^  amoris  ecstasin.  Vt  vero  de  ratione,  qua  Hafizi 
carmina,  meras  voluptates  spirantia,  theologice  exponere  solent  Mo- 
hammedani,  Nostrates  ipsi  iudicare  possint,  subiicere  visum  est  spe- 
ciminis  ergo  odam,  quae  in  poetae  Persici  Divano,  i.  e.  odarum  syn- 
tagmate,  primum  locum  occupat,  cum  paraphrasi  iuxta  mentem  Com- 
mentarii  Turcici,  quae  legitur  in  TH.  HYDE,  Syntagm.  Dissertat. 
T.  II.  p.  447. 

1  Agedum,  o  pincerna,  circummitte  poculum  et  praebe  illud  (propinandum)! 
Amor  enim  primofacilis  videatur,  sed  accidunt  tandem  difficultates.(l) 

2  Propter  vesicae  moschi  odorem,  quern  tandem  Zephyrusdispergit  ex  illis  an- 

tiis  (dilecti), 
Ex  nodo  cincinni  illius  fragrantis,  quantus  incidit  cordibus  ardor  !(2) 

1  "  Si  enim  formosae  alicui  amorem  ostenderis,"   exponit  Sudius,  poetae 
huius  Commentator,  "  ea  statim  variis  blandimentis  te  magis  magisque  illa- 
queare  conatur,  sed  postea  renitentiam  ostentans  tibi  magnas  suscitat  molesti- 
as,  quas  quum  amans  sufferre  non  possit,  modo  vino,  modo  opio,  aliisve  por- 
tionibus  se  quodammodo  refocillare,  animumque  confortare  aggreditur." 

2  Quum  crisporum  amatae  crinium  nodi,  moschi  fragrantiam  exhalantes, 
non  facile  explicentur,  in  iisque  solvendis  zephyrus  diutius  moretur,  donee  eo- 
rum  fragrantiam  difFundat  ;  maiori  semper  desiderio  afficitur  amans. 


440  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI. 

3  Stragulum  vino  tinge,  si  caupo  tibi  dixerit ; 

Nam  qui  ignare  incesserit,  non  est  de  via  et  more  mansionum,(3) 

4  Mihi  in  mansione   formosorum  (dilectorum)  quaenam  securitas  convictus, 

quum  quo  vis  momento 
Campana  sonum  edat(4)  (hunc):  Induite  baltheos  vestros  !(5) 

5  Nocte  tenebrosa,  inter  timorem  fluctuum,  et  gurgitem  adeo  terribilem, 
Quomodo  cognoscant  statum  nostrum  levitur  onusti  littoris  incolae  !(6) 

6  Totum  negotium  meum  ob  propriam  pertinaciam  in  infamia  desinit, 
Occuitum  quomodo  manebit  secretum  illud,  quod  in  consessibus  celebratur  !(7) 

7  Si  praesentiam  (amati)  desideras,  ab  eo  ne  abscondas  te,  o  Hafiz  ! 
Vt  pervenias  ad  amatum,  valedic  mundo,  et  missum  fac  eum  ! 

Paraphrasis  iuxta  mentem  Commentarii  Turcici. 

1.  Agedum,  o  Monitor  sacer,  monitorum  et  exhortationum  plenam  mensu- 
ram  praebe  ! 

Nam  etsi  amor  divinus  primo  intuitu  facilis  videatur,  in  eo  tandem  diffici- 
lia  reperiuntur. 

2.  Propter  vestigia  et  impressiones  gratiae,  quas  tandem  afflatus  divinus  ex 
illo  velo  pulchritudinis  et  excellentiae  divinae  pandit, 

Propter  plicaturas,  inquam,  ac  ordines  veli  et  gradus  occultationis  divinae, 
quantus  cordibus  nostris  inest  ardor  ! 

3.  Devotionis  stragulum  vino  amoris  tingito,  nee  esto  religione  quasi  aridus 
et  siccus,  si  sacrorum  antistes  tibi  praeceperit : 

Ille  enim,  qui  ignoranter  et  sine  notitia  amoris  ambulaverit,  non  assequitur 
normam  ac  viam  mansionum  et  graduum  accessus  ad  Deum;  nam  coniunctio 
cum  Deo  obtinetur  amore  divino,  iuxta  celebrem  apud  Arabes  sententiam  : 
proxima  ad  Deum  via  est  via  amantium  ipsum. 

4.  Mihi  autern  in  mansionibus  seu  gradibus  ambulationis  ad  Deum  quae- 

3  Retinuimus  Hydianam  huius  hemistichii  versionem,  quod  ei  Commenta- 
toris  Turcici  paraphrasis  respondet.  Sed  rectius  verba  Persica  ita  vertuntur  : 
nam  viator  non  ignorat  viam  modumque  stationum.  Simplex  huius  versus  sen- 
sus  hie  est :  si  tibi  caupo  dixerit :  tapetem  ad  sacra  et  preces  stern i  solitum  (is 
enim  voce  OOv!SlTA*»  significatur)  vino  tinge,  dictis  eius  pare;  nam  expertus 
viator  omnes  vias  amoris  anfractus  et  latebras  atque  recessus  perspectos  et  ex- 
ploratos  habet.  Id  est :  quicquid  tibi  caupo  praeceperit  in  amore  faciendum, 
sive  id  fas,  sive  nefas  fuerit,  prompte  et  sine  cunctatione  exsequere,  etenirn 
ille  consuetudinum  amoris  apprime  peritus  magister  est: 

4  Imago  petita  a  peregrinantium  turmis,  quas   Caravanas  vocant :  signo 
enim  profectionis  tintinnabulo  dato  viae  comites  admonentur,  ut  sarcinas  colli- 
gant   et  iumentis   imponant,  quo   omnes  simul  loco  movere  et  iter  aggredi 
possint. 

5  Vel :  sarcinas  colligate. 

6  Dum  nos  in  divortii  tenebris  versamur,  et  aemuli  metu  angimur,  atque  ve- 
remur,  ne  perpetuae  separationis  voragine  absumamur,  tantorum  periculorum 
formidinem  quomodo  norint  illi,qui  in  tranquillo  littore  amatae  iuncti  metu  ae- 
muli et  divortii  timore  carent  ? 

7  Inconsultis  meis  et  unice  ad  meam  lubidinem,  non  ad  amatae  nutum  ac 
voluntatem  institutis  factis,  dedecus  et  infamiam  mihi  contraxi.     Aut  qui  spe- 
rare  potui,  tectum  occultumque  fore  araorem,  de  quo  ii*  concionibtis  passim 
iiunt  confabulationes  ? 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  441 


warn  est  a  seductionibus  Satanae  securitas  ?  quaenam  est  permanentia  ac  tuta 
Vivendi  ratio  ?  quum  singulis  momentis. 

Discessus  cainpana  pulsetur,  quae  funestam  illam  vocem  edit :  accingite 
vos  baltheis  vestris,  hincque  migrate  ! 

5.  Et  in  tali  cogitationum  mundanarum  animaeque  cupiditatum  caligine,  in- 
que  tanta  istius,  in  quo  ambulamus,  maris  fluctuatione  et  horribili  peccatorum 
gurgite. 

Quomodo  statum  nostrum  perspectum  habere  eiusve  misereri  possunt  ange- 
li,  vel  ii,  qui  plenam  cum  Deo  coniunctionem  obtinuerunt,  adeoque  certandi 
onere  levati,  incolumes  in  salutis  littore  collocantur  ? 

6.  Res  eo  tandem  recidit,  ut  dum  propriam  voluntatem  sector  propriae  per- 
tinaciae  poenas  luam  ;  nam  Seni  et   monitori  sacro  non  obsequutus,  servituti 
Satanae  subiicior,  et  infamia  mea  inter  homines  celebratur ;  iuxta  illud,  quod 
apud  Arabes  memoriae  proditum  est :    quicunque  Senem  (doctorem)  sibi  assis- 
tentem  non  adhibuerit,  eius  Senex  (doctor,  magister)  proculdubio  erit  Satanas. 

Atque  id  quidem,  quod  in  publicis  hominum  consessibus  effutitur,  arcanum 
manere  non  potest. 

7.  At  si  tandem  praesentia  divina  frui  cupis,  propria  culpa  (i.  e.  adhaeren* 
do  mundo),  ne  separes  te  ab  ea,  o  Hafiz ! 

Sed  reiice  mundum,  quern  tantopere  dilexisti  et  missum  facito  1 

Cuius  carminis  postremus  versus  satis  arguit,  quae  de  amore  et 
vino  cecinit  poeta,  ipsum  velle  allegorice  de  divino  amore  et  inten- 
tae  ardentisque  erga  Deum  pietatis  sensu  dicta  intelligi.  Q,uod  qui- 
dem poetae  popularibus  ita  est  persuasum,  ut  ipsis  V^-^^^F  (ju*O 
lissan  elgliaib  i.  e.  lingua  arcana  s.  mystica  audiat.  Vide  vitam  Ha- 
fizi  ex  Daulet  Schahi  historia  poetarum  Persicorum  in  Wilkenii 
Chrestomath.  Pers.  p.  220,  quae  Franco-gallice  reddita  legitur  ab 
S.  de  Sacy  in  Notices  et  Extraits  des  Manuscrits  de  la  Biblibtheque 
du  Roi,  T.  IV.  p.  238  seqq.  Nostratium  quidem  nonnulli,  ut 
Reviczkius  et  lones,  etsi  negare  nequeant,  Hafizum  aliosque  poetas 
ei  similes  immisQere  passim  suis  carminibus  eiusmodi  versus,  qui 
ardentissimum  Dei  amorem  et  pietatis  erga  eum  sensum  profitentur ; 
id  tamen  eo  consilio  ab  illis  factum  esse  existimant,  ut  criminatorum 
cavillationes  subterfugerent,  civesque  suos  credulos  et  religiosos  de- 
ciperent,  dum  ipsi  voluptatibus  liberius  indulserint.  Sed  reputan- 
dum  est,  omnia  eiusmodi  carmina  composita  esse  ab  hominibus  rig- 
idiori  Sufiorum*  disciplinae  addictis,  qui  in  monasteriis  inclusi  to- 
tos  rerum  divinarum  meditationi  et  vitae  contemplativae  sese  devo- 
verant.  Tales  inter  Arabes  Abul-Ola  (de  quo  vide  Herbelotii  Biblio- 
thec.  Oriental.)  et  Faredh  (vide  Silvestre  de  Sacy,  Chrcstom.  Arab. 
P.  III.  p.  152  seqq.)  inter  Persas  praeter  Hafizum,  Dschami,  Kha- 

*  /-3*JO    De  quibus  vide  Pocockii  Specim,  Hist  Arab.  p.  374. 
56 


442  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI. 


cani,  Orsi,  Mirkhosru,  Nizami,  et  plures  alii,  qui  theologiam  mysti- 
cam  allegoria  amoris  Leilae  et  Medschnuni,  aut  Khosrui  et  Schiri- 
nae,  involutam  cecinerunt.  Nee  desunt  libri,  qui  clavis  usum  prae- 
stent,  qua  dictionem  figuratarum,  quibus  Mystici  il!i  suis  in  carmin- 
ibus  uti  solent,  sensus  arcanus  recludatur.  In  iis  traditur,  somnum 
significare  perfectionem  divinarum  medita.tionem,fragrantiamspem 
obtinendi  favorem  divinum.  Aura  lenis  rcfrigerans  indicat  gratiae  di- 
vinae  emanationem,  oscula  et  amplexus  vero  significant  pietatis  Ixircct- 
otig.  Per  idololatras,  infideles  et  libidinosos  intelliguntur  homines  pu- 
rissimae  religioni  addicti,  quorum  idolum  est  ipsum  summum  numen. 
Taberna  vinaria  locum  sacrum  ad  orandum  indicat,  et  caupo  virum 
pium,  qui  aliis  salutaria  monita  impertit.  Pulcritudo  summi  numinis 
perfectionem,  cincinni  gloriam  eius  longe  lateque  expansam,  lahia  ar- 
cana essentiae  eius,  et  genarum  pili  molles  propullulantes  spiritus  coe- 
lestes  thronum  illius  circumstantes  designant.  Voluptate,  denique, 
lascivia  et  cbrietatc  indicantur  animi  coacitati  et  a  corporis  sensibus 
abstract!  motus  ad  contemplanda  coelestia.  ROSENMUELL^R. 

[D.  p.  262.]     Illustration  of  passages  quoted  from  Solomon's  Song. 

IV.  8.     "  Mecum  ex  Libano  sponsa, 
"  Mecum  ex  Libano  veni ; 
"  Prospectabis  ex  cacumine  Amanae 
"  Ex  cacumine  Seniri  et  Hermonis, 
"  Ex  lustris  leonum,  montibus  pardonum."  MICHAKLIS. 

Sensum  eorum,  quae  poeta  Hebraeus  figurate  expressit,  ita  ex- 
posuit  Chaldaeus  :  Dixit  Dominus  in  verbo  suo :  mecum  eris  liabi- 
tans,  coetus  Israel,  qui  similis  es  sponsae  verecundae,  et  mecum  in- 
gredieris  in  domum  Sanctuarii ;  ojferentque  tibi  munera  principes 
populorum,  qui  habitant  super  fluvium  Amana,  et  incolae  montis 
nivis,  et  gentes  Hermonis^  et  pendent  tibi  tributa  habitatores  civita- 
tumfortium,  qui  robusti  sunt  sicut  leones,  munera  ab  urbibus  monti- 
um,  i.  e.  ab  habitatoribus  urbium  montanarum,  qui  sunt  fortiores 
pardis.  Ad  quam  interpretationem  recte  intelligendam  et  diiudican- 
dam  observandum,  Libano  templum  Hierosolymitanum  innui,  e  lignis 
cedrinis  in  Libano  nascentibus,  exstructum  (plura  vid.  in  not.  ad 
Ezech.  xvii.  3),  baud  sine  allusione  ad  nomen  JiDizb  ,  thus,  ob 
thuris  in  templo  frequentissimum  usum,  unde  idem  vs.  6.  eiusdem 
Capitis  quarti  Cantici  allegorico  nomine  SiaiS^Sl  r)^z3,  collis  thuris 
appellatur.  Libano  templum  indicari  a  nostro  poeta,  apparet  quo 
queexIII.9,  l'l^n  ^^  Httirt  tftftfl  ^  ^??  l^"^,  Tha'amt 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  443 

s.  solium  fecit  sibi  Salomo  rex  e  lignis  Libani,  quae  Chaldaeus  ex- 
pi  icat :  jtfEhlp  b^H  Templum  Sanctuarii  aedificavit  sibi  rex  Salo- 
mo de  lignis  ceitrinis.  Hinc  idem  interpres  infra  IV. 15,  proeo  quod 
in  Hebraeo  est :  ]i2ib";7:  trbt:,  quae  defltiunt  de  Libano  j  posuit : 
aquae  quae  libantur  super  altar  e,  fiblpi"P!3  "»:in727  N2nj?53  rP^a 
1?:3b  "'"Upna'l,  in  domo  sanctuarii,  quae  acdifecata  est  Hierosolymis, 
et  vocatur  Liuonus.  Quae  quum  ita  sint,  verba  IV.  8,  "pU^Vfc  "Pitf 
^T^n  "p-Wa  "FiN  MV3  Mecum  e  Libano, o  sponsa  !  mecum  e  Libano 
venies,  hoc  sibi  volunt :  mecum  e  Libano,  i.  e.  templo,  et  urbe  atque 
terra,  in  qua  illud  situm  est,  migrabis,  in  exteras  terras  deportan- 
dus,  sed  itidem  mecum,  lova,  eo  reverteris.  larchi :  "  Quando  de- 
portabimini  de  Libano  isto  (i.  e.  templo,  ut  annotarat  ad  vs.  6), 
mecum  deportabimini,  nam  ego  migrabo  vobiscum.  Quando  vero 
revertemini  ab  exilio  ;  ego  vobiscum  revertar,  quin  etiam  omni  ex- 
ilii  tempore  in  angustiis  tuis  mihi  fuerunt  angustiae  (lesai.  Ixiii.  9). 
Dicitur  vero  hie  :  mecum  de  Libano  venies,  i.  e.  quando  deportabim- 
ini de  Libano  isto,  mecum  venietis,  nee  dicitur  :  mecum  ad  Liba- 
num  venies,  ut  innueret,  se  ab  illo  iride  tempore,  quo  sint  egressuri, 
usque  ad  tempus,  quo  sint  reversuri,  semper  iis  aflfuturum."  Span- 
sae  nomen  populo  Israelitico  tribuitur  ex  lesai.  Ixii.  5,  ^rfn  i!31iB£-1 
^"•n^N  *pb37  iD*1'^  SlV5""bi>  Quam  de  sponsa  voluptatem  cnpit  spon- 
sus,  earn  de  le  capiet  Dens  tuus.  lam  satis,  spero,  tibi  patebit  ratio 
explicationis  Chaldaicae  hemistichii  prioris.  Quod  vero  alterum  at- 
tinet  hemistichium,  'i^l  Jli53wN5  ttfii"i73  ^niCF),  id  ex  mente  Chaldaei 
interpretis  ita  capiendum  erit :  prospect abis  advenientes  ex  Amanis 
vertice  etc.,  i.  e.  eos  qui  e  gentibus  exteris  ad  te  cum  muneribus 
mittuntur,  quibus  gratiam  et  arnicitiam  tuam  sibi  concilient,  secun- 
dum  illud  lesaiae  Ix.  5  seqq.  Convertetur  ad  te  marina  turba,  tibi 
gentium  copiae  venient.  Te  camelorum  armentum  obruet,  dromades 
Madianitici  et  Ephani,  omnes  ex  Sabaca  venient,  aurum  et  thus  ad- 
fcrentes.  Noster  poeta  vero,  quia  proxime  antea  Libani  mentionem 
fecerat,  exterarum  nationum  legates  in  terram  Israeliticam  descen- 
dentes  eleganter  fingit  de  illis  montibus,  qui  et  Libano  iuncti  essent, 
et  fines  boreales  Cananaeae  constituerent,  vide  Deut.  iii.  8,  9,  iv. 
48.  Pro  monte  Amana  Chaldaeus  posuit  fiumcn  eiusdem  nominis, 
e  monte  illo  decurrens,  atque  Damascenes  agros  alluens,  2  Reg.  v.. 
12 ;  pro  T^3**li  vero  montem  nivis.  Videlicet  Senir  erat  illud  nomen, 
quo  Hcrmonem  Amoraei  appellare  solebant,  uti  diserte  dicitur  Deut. 
iii.  9.  Hermonis  verticem  vere  nive  fuisse  tectum,  non  solum  ex 
Hieronymi  Onomastico  apparet,  ubi  sub  Aermon  legitur :  de  quo 


444  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI. 

nunc  aestivae  nives  Tyrum  ob  delicias  feruntur,  verum  etiam  ex 
Samaritano  interprete,  qui  Deuter.  iv.  48  habet :  sorr  fcMVn  11S3 
•pftin,  mons  nivis,  qui  est  Herman.  Atque  ita  eodem  loco  Targum 
Hierosolymitanum  habet  N}bn  "nt2,  mons  nivis,  quum  in  Hebraeo 

*3  legatur. 

H.  10 — 13.  Haud  absimilus  veris  descriptio  apud  OVIDIUM, 
Fastor.  L.  I.  vs.  151  seqq. 

Omnia  tune  florent,  tune  est  nova  temporis  aetas, 

Et  nova  de  gravido  palmite  gemma  tumet. 
Et  mo  do  formatis  amicitur  vitibus  arbos  ; 

Prodit  et  in  summum  seminis  herba  solum  : 
Et  tepidum  volucres  concentibus  aera  mulcent  ; 

Ludit  et  in  pratis  luxuriatque  pecus. 
Turn  blandi  soles,  ignotaque  prodit  hirundo  ; 

Et  luteum  celsa  sub  trabe  fingit  opus  : 
Turn  patitur  cultus  ager,  et  renovatur  aratro. 

Haec  anni  novitas  iure  vocanda  fuit. 

Ceterum  ilium  Cantici  locum  Chaldaeus  refert  ad  Hebraeorum 
ex  Aegypto  exitum  in  mense  Abib  (Exod.  xiii.  4,  5),  id  est,  ver- 
no  tempore.  Ita  enim  ille  versum  10  exponit :  Coetus  Israel,  dilec- 
ta  mca  antiquitus,  pulchra  opcribus,  vade,  egredere  e  servitute  Ac- 
gypti.  Idem  sequitur  larchi,  qui  tamen  bene  observavit  ad  vs.  12 
et  13,  capiendos  eos  esse  sensu  simplici  et  literali,  quo  innuit,  reli- 
quam  suavissimam  veris  descriptionem  ornatus  caussa  additam,  nee 
singula  esse  allegorice  dicta  intelligenda. 

IV.  10,  11.  Huius  loci  sensus  proprius,  iuxta  Chaldaeum,  hie 
erit :  Gratior  es  mihi  omnibus  aliis  populis,  et  longe  iucundior,  quam 
quivis  suavissimi  vini  gustus,  et  qui  e  te  virtutum  tuarum  odor  ema- 
nat,  superat  aromata  omnia.  Favum  destillant  labia  piorum,  prop- 
ter  doctrinam  divinae  legis  et  odor  vestimentorum  sacerdotum  est 
sicut  oder  Libani.  ROSENMUELLER. 

IV.  1—5.  V.  1.  "  Capilli  tui,"  etc.  The  point  of  comparison 
is  the  bright  hue  and  delicate  smoothness  of  the  hair.  "  When  we 
saw  the  flocks  of  goats  descending  from  the  mountain"  (Gilead), 
(says  Schultz  in  den  Leitungen  des  Hochsten,  Th.  V.  S.  289),  [the 
sun  shining  strongly  upon  them]  "  it  seemed  as  if  a  cloud  of  fire  cov- 
ered the  mountain,  and  the  splendour  was  so  dazzling  that  our  eyes 
could  scarcely  endure  it."  u;^,  according  to  Gesenius,  like  the 


Arabic  (J*****,  means  to  sit,  to  lie  down,  to  be  encamped. 

V.  2.  "  Dentes  tui,"  etc.  The  point  of  comparison  is  the  rej 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  445 

larity,  whiteness,  and  soundness  of  the  teeth.  Among  the  Arabs, 
the  teeth  are  often  compared  to  pearls,  corals,  and  the  stars ;  and 
one  of  the  Persian  poets  calls  a  fine  set  of  teeth  the  cluster  of  the 
Pleiades. 

V.  3.  "  Labella  tua,"  etc.  The  beautiful  redness  of  the  lips  is. 
here  referred  to.  The  Arabs,  to  express  the  same  quality,  call  the 
lips  the  ruby-mines  ;  and  the  Persians  speak  of  them  as  the  red  par- 
rots,  conserve  of  roses,  the  rosebud,  the  laughing  rose,  the  peach,  the 
blood  of  grapes,  etc.  The  mouth  is  called  the  jewel  of  Solomon,  the 
secret  of  concealment,  the  casket  of  rubies,  the  fountain  of  sweetness, 
the  thief  of  the  heart,  etc. 

"  Genae  tuae,"  etc.  The  cheeks,  full,  tinged  with  red  and 
white,  and  partly  concealed  by  the  flowing  locks  of  hair,  are  com- 
pared to  the  two  halves  of  a  pomegranate.  The  same  comparison  is 
frequently  used  by  the  Arabs  and  Persians. 

V.  4.  "  Collum  tuum,"  etc.  A  very  bold  image,  but  to  an  Orien- 
tal extremely  beautiful.  The  grace,  the  nice  proportion,  and  the 
firmness  of  the  neck,  are  indicated  by  the  first  part  of  the  verse  ;  and 
the  ornaments  of  it  by  the  second.  The  Hebrew  poet,  even  here,  is 
outdone  by  one  of  the  Arabs,  who  designates  the  neck  of  a  beauti- 
ful woman  as  femur  coclorum. 

V.  5.  "  Duae  mamillae,"  etc.  The  image  here  I  believe  all  will 
acknowledge  to  be  exquisitely  beautiful,  and  too  obvious  to  need  illus- 
tration. (Compare  Lied  der  Liebe,  das  aelteste  und  schoenste  aus 
dem  Morgenlande.  Neu  uebersetzt  und  aesthetisch  erklaert  durch 
Dr.  Friedr.  Wilh.  Carl  Umbreit,  Goettingen,  1820,  S.  144  if.)  S. 

Chap.  v.  11,  14.     vii.  C,  14. 

It  is  much  to  be  lamented,  that  no  commentator  has  arisen  suffi- 
ciently qualified  to  explain  this  beautiful  poem.  Those  who  have 
attempted  it  have  been  scholastic  divines,  rather  indeed  mystics,  and 
have  entirely  overlooked  the  obvious  and  more  elegant  meaning.  In- 
deed the  task  is  by  no  means  easy  :  besides  a  very  accurate  and 
idiomatical  knowledge  of  the  Oriental  languages,  an  intimate  ac- 
quaintance with  the  manners  of  antiquity,  and  no  small  information 
concerning  natural  history,  will  be  requisite :  to  these  must  be  add- 
ed a  good  deal  of  reading  in  the  Arabic  poetry,  particularly  in  their 
compositions  of  the  amorous  kind,  and  last  of  all,  a  true  taste  for  poe- 
try. Very  few  of  these  qualities  have  existed  separately,  and  never 
all  of  them  conjunctly,  in  those  who  have  undertaken  to  illustrate 
this  poem-. 


446  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI. 


In  order  to  exemplify  how  much  might  be  effected  towards  clear- 
ing up  the  obscurities  of  this  most  elegant  composition,  by  a  knowl- 
edge of  natural  history  alone,  I  will  endeavour  to  explain  my  opin- 
ion of  some  difficult  passages  (chap.  v.  11,  14.  vii.  6,  14.)  In  ch. 
v.  6,  11,  most  people  are  ignorant,  and  at  a  loss  to  conjecture,  what 
may  be  the  meaning  of  D^nbn :  the  Seventy  and  the  Vulgate  ren- 
der it  ikuictg  (elatas)  or  the  downy  substance  in  which  the  dates  are 
involved ;  nor  is  this  translation  very  different  from  the  Arabic, 
which  renders  it  the  branch  of  the  palm  tree  from  which  the  dates  de- 
pend. But  what  relation  can  this  bear  to  the  human  hair  ?  I  an- 
swer, the  resemblance  is  obvious  to  any  person  who  has  seen  the 
object  of  the  comparison,  or  has  remarked  the  plate  of  it  annexed  to 
the  notes  on  Theophrastus's  History  of  Plants,  by  Jo.  BUDEUS. — 
But  how  is  Solomon  consistent,  in  the  same  verse  speaking  of  raven 
locks,  and  a  golden  head  ? 

"  His  head  is  of  pure  gold, 

"  The  locks  of  which  resemble  the  branches  of  the  palm  tree. 

"  And  black  as  the  raven."* 

To  reconcile  this  difficulty,  it  is  necessary  to  know,  that  although 
the  Orientals  may  possibly  admire  raven  locks  in  their  natural  state, 
yet  they  are  accustomed  to  dye  them  with  henna  (so  they  call  the 
oil  of  privet)  in  order  to  give  them  a  yellow  or  golden  cast :  this  is 
an  ancient  custom,  though  the  existence  of  it  among  the  Hebrews 
may  be  disputed  ;  but  probably  for  this  same  purpose  they  might 
make  use  of  gold  dust,  as  the  Latins  are  known  to  have  done. 

With  the  same  henna  they  stain  the  countenance,  as  well  as  the 
hands  and  arms,  which  first  changes  them  to  an  azure  blue,  and 

*  Simile  imagine  utitur  Amralkeis  in  Moallaca,  vs.  34. 

)l   C  £       /    G  /  C<0     J  /       5     C  /   / 


C     £ 


Et  coma  ampla  talis,  qua  decorat  dorsum,  nigra,  carbonis  instar, 
Copiosa,  implexaque,  sicut  racemi  palmae  implicit!. 

Nee  non  Motanabbi  in  Speciminibus  a  Reiskio  editis  (Proben  der  arabischen 

Dichtkunst  aus  dem  Motanabbi),  Leips.  1765,  in  quat.  p.  23. 

<LJ>^ 


(Coma)  Nigra  ut  coryus,  densa,  noctis  colorem  referens,  copiosa,  crispa 
neutiquam  veto  arte. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXI.  447 

they  grow  yellow  by  degrees  ;  and  this  they  esteem  a  great  object  of 
beauty,  though  it  would  be  accounted  deformity  with  us.  This  ob- 
servation will  enable  us  to  understand  better  some  phrases  in  the 
14th  and  15th  verses  of  the  same  chapter  : 

"  His  hands  are  as  gold  rings 

"  Inlaid  with  chrysolite  : 

"  His  belly  as  plates  of  ivory, 

"  Inclosed  in  sapphire  : 

"  His  legs  are  as  columns  of  marble 

"  Upon  a  base  of  gold." 

The  fingers  being  stained  with  henna  t  appeared  as  if  they  had  gold 
rings  on,  set  with  chrysolyte  ;  which  gem  was  formerly  of  a  yellow 
colour.  I  say  formerly,  because  the  same  stone  which  we  call  the 
topaz  was  the  ancient  chrysolite.  (See  HILL'S  Hist,  of  Fossils.) 
But  if  by  the  word  •iTttpP)  we  understand  the  ancient  hyacinth  or 
amethyst,  an  azure  colour  will  then  be  alluded  to,  which  the  same 
henna  produces  on  the  skin.  The  whiteness  of  the  body,  covered 
with  a  delicate  purple  vest,  is  finely  compared  to  ivory  overlaid  with 
sapphire.  izJ'»U  is  without  doubt  figured  marble:  to  which  the  legs 
and  thighs  are  compared,  from  the  blue  and  serpentine  veins  which 
run  along  them,  and  which  are  more  pellucid  in  proportion  to  the 
fineness  of  the  skin.  The  bases  are  golden  slippers. 

The  5th  verse  of  the  seventh  chapter  is  among  the  most  difficult. 
The  head  of  the  king's  daughter  is  compared  to  the  pyramidal  top  of 
Carmel,  covered  with  thick  trees,  by  which  simile  is,  I  apprehend, 
intimated  the  quantity  and  beauty  of  her  hair.  The  word  nVl  also 
occurs  for  hair,  in  the  explanation  of  which  commentators  have 
been  greatly  perplexed  ;  some,  led  away  by  a  whimsical  etymology, 
have  supposed  it  to  mean  thin  hair,  as  if  this  could  possibly  be  a 
subject  of  flattery  to  a  young  lady.  In  my  opinion,  the  word  is  de- 
rived from  the  Arabic,  as  well  as  the  Chaldaic  word  b^b^  (the  fringe 
of  a  garment  or  tent),  and  means  any  thing  pendant,  or  hanging 
loose.  The  hair  is  compared  to  purple,  not  however,  I  think,  on  ac- 
count of  the  colour  :  for  the  henna,  with  which  they  stained  their 
hair,  makes  it  yellow,  not  purple  :  I  suspect  some  allusion  is  rather 
intended  to  the  animal,  which  produces  purple.  That  animal  is  of  a 
pyramidal  form,  rising  beautifully  in  a  spiral  cone,  whence  it  is  call- 
ed tta*&J,  from  its  likeness  to  the  stone  monuments.* 


*  Sed  'j'ai'nst  cochleam  purpurariam  notare,  mera  est  coniectura,  eaque  pa- 
rum  certa  ;  illiusnomen  Hebraicum  videtur  potius  •ptVli  fuisse;  vide  BOCHAR- 
TI  Hieroz.  P.  II.  L.  V.  C.  IX.  Crinis  amicae  Cantic.'  VII.  G,  purpurae  com- 
paratur  ob  splendorem.  Ita  poetae  exteri  Niso  tribuunt  purpuream  comam,  vida 
e.  c.  TIBVI.LUS,  ti.  I.  Eleg.  IV.  vs.  14,  et  cf.  Hygini  Fab.  198.  ROSENMUELUER. 


448  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII. 


There  follows  trurna  -rtOtf  ^f:E,  which,  with  some  degree  of  hesi- 
tation, I  venture  to  translate,  "  as  a  king  encircled  with  a  diadem  :" 
the  Septuagint  has  it  o)g  notjqvQa  Paathcws,  nfQtdtdtptwi  ufojfiaoi. 
The  upright  Oriental  tiara  is  alluded  to,  the  mark  of  royalty,  which 
is  more  noble  the  higher  it  is.  Thus  the  verse  may  be  explained, 
and  it  will  then  be  found  to  present  a  just  picture  of  the  Oriental 
head-dress  : 

"  Thine  head  resembles  Carmel  ; 

"  And  thine  hair  is  raised  like  the  shell  of  the  purple, 

"  Like  a  king  encircled  with  diadems." 

In  the  latter  verses  of  the  same  chapter  there  is  an  elegant  de- 
scription of  spring,  but  what  chiefly  creates  difficulty  is,  the  E^atT)1?, 
which  are  said  to  produce  odours.  The  famous  CELSIUS,  in  his  Sa- 
cred Botany,  seems  to  have  been  peculiarly  unfortunate  on  this  sub- 
ject. The  word  is  translated  mandr  agora  (or  mandrake)  on  the 
most  ancient  authority  :  but  Celsius  cannot  allow  this  plant  any 
place  in  a  love  poem,  because  it  has  in  reality  a  bad  smell.  The 
text  explained  from  the  Arabic  is,  "  The  mandrakes  produce  a  strong 
odour."  We  must  remember,  that  it  was  the  opinion  of  all  the  Ori- 
entals, that  the  mandrake  was  of  especial  efficacy  in  love  potions  ; 
the  truth  of  which  opinion  is  of  no  concern  to  us,  if  we  only  allow  it 
to  have  been  the  general  opinion  of  the  eastern  nations.  The  text 
therefore  implies,  "  The  mandrake  will  breathe  its  strong  and  som- 
niferous odours,  and  provoke  to  lore."  MICHAELIS. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII. 

[A.  p.  264.]     Scene  and  characters  of  the  look  of  Job. 

The  information  which  the  learned  have  endeavoured  to  collect 
from  the  writings  and  geography  of  the  Greeks  concerning  the  coun- 
try and  residence  of  Job  and  his  friends,  appears  to  me  very  incon- 
clusive, that  I  am  inclined  to  take  a  quite  different  method  for  the 
solution  of  this  question,  by  applying  solely  to  the  Sacred  Writings  : 
the  hints  with  which  they  have  furnished  me  towards  the  illustra- 
tion of  this  subject,  I  shall  explain  as  briefly  as  possible. 

The  land  of  Uzt  or  Gnutz,  is  evidently  Idumca,  as  appears  from 
LAM.  iv.  21.  Uz  was  the  grandson  of  Seir,  the  Horite:  GEN. 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII.  449 

xxxvi.  20,  21,  28.  1  CHRON.  i.  38,  42.  Seir  inhabited  the  moun- 
tainous tract  which  was  called  by  his  name  antecedent  to  the  time 
of  Abraham,  but  his  posterity  being  expelled,  it  was  occupied  by  the 
Idumeans :  GEN.  xiv.  6.  DEUT.  ii.  12.  Two  other  men  are  men- 
tioned of  the  name  Uz;  one  the  grandson  of  Shem,  the  other  the 
son  of  Nachor,  the  brother  of  Abraham  ;  but  whether  any  district 
was  called  after  their  name  is  not  clear.  Idumaca  is  a  part  of  Ara- 
bia Petrrea,  situated  on  the  southern  extremity  of  the  tribe  of  Judah  : 
Numb,  xxxiv.  3.  Josh.  xv.  1,  21 :  the  land  of  Uz  therefore  appears 
to  have  been  between  Egypt  and  Philistia.  See  Jer.  xxv.  20,  where 
the  order  of  the  places  seems  to  have  been  accurately  observed  in 
reviewing  the  different  nations  from  Egypt  to  Babylon ;  and  the 
same  people  seem  again  to  be  described  in  exactly  the  same  situa- 
tions, Jer.  XLVI — L. 

Children  of  the  East  or  Eastern  people,  seems  to  have  been  the 
general  appellation  for  that  mingled  race  of  people  (as  they  are  call- 
ed, Jer.  xxv.  20)  who  inhabited  between  Egypt  and  the  Euphrates, 
bordering  upon  Judea  from  the  South  to  the  East ;  the  Idumaeans, 
the  Amalekites,  the  Midianites,  the  Moabites,  the  Ammonites  :  see 
Jud.  vi.  3.  and  Isa.  xi.  14.  Of  these  the  Idumaeans  and  Amalekites 
certainly  possessed  the  southern  parts  ;  see  Numb,  xxxiv.  3.  xiii.  29. 
1  Sam.  xxvii.  8,  10.  This  appears  to  be  the  true  state  of  the  case  : 
the  whole  region  between  Egypt  and  Euphrates  was  called  the  East, 
at  first  in  respect  to  Egypt  (where  the  learned  Jos.  Mede  thinks  the 
Israelites  acquired  this  mode  of  speaking,  MEDE'S  Works,  page 
580),  and  afterwards  absolutely  and  without  any  relation  to  situa- 
tion or  circumstances.  Abraham  is  said  to  have  sent  the  sons  of 
his  concubines,  Hagar  and  Keturah,  "  Eastward,  to  the  country 
which  is  commonly  called  the  East."  Gen.  xxv.  6,  where  the  name 
of  the  region  seems  to  have  been  derived  from  the  same  situation. 
Solomon  is  reported  "  to  have  excelled  in  wisdom  all  the  Eastern 
people,  and  all  Egypt :"  1  Kings  iv.  30,  that  is,  all  the  neighbouring 
people  on  that  quarter  :  for  there  were  people  beyond  the  bounda- 
ries of  Egypt,  and  bordering  on  the  south  of  Judea,  who  were  fa- 
mous for  wisdom,  namely,  the  Idumseans,  (see  Jer.  xlix.  7.  Ob.  8) 
to  whom  we  may  well  believe  this  passage  might  have  some  relation. 
Thus  JEHOVAH  addresses  the  Babylonians :  "  Arise,  ascend  unto 
Kedar,  and  lay  waste  the  children  of  the  East,"  Jer.  xlix.  28,  not- 
withstanding these  were  really  situated  to  the  west  of  Babylon. 
57 


450  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII. 


Although  Job,  therefore,  be  accounted  one  of  the  Orientals,  it  by 
no  means  follows,  that  his  residence  must  be  in  Arabia  Deserta. 

Eliphaz  the  Tcmanite :  Eliphaz  was  the  son  of  Esau,  and  Te- 
man  the  son  of  Eliphaz  :  Gen.  xxxvi.  10,  11.  The  Eliphaz  of  Job 
was,  without  a  doubt,  of  this  race.  Teman  is  certainly  a  city  of 
Idumaea:  Jer.  xlix.  7,  20.  Ezek.  xxv.  13.  Amos  i.  11, 12.  Ob.  8,9. 
Bildad  the  Skuhite :  Shuah  was  one  of  the  sons  of  Abraham  by 
Keturah,  whose  posterity  were  numbered  among  the  people  of  the 
East,  and  his  situation  was  probably  contiguous  to  that  of  his  broth- 
er Midian,  and  of  his  nephews,  Shebah  and  Dedan  :  see  Gen.  xxv. 
2  and  3.  Dedan  is  a  city  of  Idumaea  :  Jer.  xlix.  8,  and  seems  to 
have  been  situated  on  the  eastern  side,  as  Teman  was  on  the  west, 
Ezek.  xxv.  13.  From  Sheba  originated  the  Sabaeans  in  the  pas- 
sage from  Arabia  Felix  to  the  Red  Sea  :  Sheba  is  united  to  Midian, 
Isa.  Ix.  6 ;  it  is  in  the  same  region  however  with  Midian,  and  not  far 
from  mount  Horeb,  Exod.  ii.  15,  iii.  1. 

~Zophar  the  Naamatliite :  among  the  cities,  which  by  lot  fell  to 
the  tribe  of  Judah,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Idumsea,  Naama  is  enu- 
merated, Josh.  xv.  21,  41.  Nor  does  this  name  elsewhere  occur  : 
this  probably  was  the  country  of  Zophar. 

Elihu  the  Buzite :  Buz  occurs  but  once  as  the  name  of  a  place 
or  country,  Jer.  xxv.  23,  where  it  is  mentioned  along  with  Dedan 
and  Thema  :  Dedan,  as  was  just  now  demonstrated,  is  a  city  of 
Idumaea ;  Thema  belonged  to  the  children  of  Ishmael,  who  are  said 
to  have  inhabited  from  Havilah  even  to  Shur,  which  is  in  the  dis- 
trict of  Egypt,  Gen.  xxv.  15,  18.  Saul,  however,  is  said  to  have 
smitten  the  Amalekites  from  Havilah  even  to  Shur,  which  is  in  the 
district  of  Egypt,  1  Sam.  xv.  7.  Havilah  cannot,  therefore,  be  very 
far  from  the  boundaries  of  the  Amalekites  ;  but  the  Amalekites  nev- 
er exceeded  the  boundaries  of  Arabia  Petraea.  (See  RELAND,  Pal- 
aestin.  lib.  i.  c.  xiv.)  Thema,  therefore,  lay  somewhere  between 
Havilah  and  the  desert  of  Shur,  to  the  southward  of  Judea.  Thema 
is  also  mentioned  in  connexion  with  Sheba,  Job  vi.  19. 

Upon  a  fair  review  of  these  facts  I  think  we  may  venture  to  con- 
clude, still  with  that  modesty  which  such  a  question  demands,  that 
Job  was  an  inhabitant  of  Arabia  Petraea,  as  well  as  his  friends,  or 
at  least  of  that  neighbourhood.  To  this  solution  one  objection  may 
be  raised  :  it  may  be  asked,  how  the  Chaldeans,  who  lived  on  the 
borders  of  the  Euphrates,  could  make  depredations  on  the  camels  of 
Job,  who  lived  in  Idumaea  at  so  great  a  distance  ?  This  too  is 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII.  451 

thought  a  sufficient  cause  for  assigning  Job  a  situation  in  Arabia 
Deserta,  and  not  far  from  the  Euphrates.  But  what  should  prevent 
the  Chaldeans,  as  well  as  the  Sabaeans,  a  people  addicted  to  rapine, 
and  roving  about  at  immense  distances  for  the  sake  of  plunder,  from 
wandering  through  these  defenceless  regions,  which  were  divided  in- 
to tribes  and  families  rather  than  into  nations,  and  pervading  from 
Euphrates  even  to  Egypt  ?  Further,  I  would  ask  on  the  other  hand, 
whether  it  be  probable  that  all  the  friends  of  Job,  who  lived  in  Idu- 
maea  and  its  neighbourhood,  should  instantly  be  informed  of  all  that 
could  happen  to  Job  in  the  desert  of  Arabia  and  on  the  confines  of 
Chaldea,  and  immediately  repair  thither  ?  Or  whether  it  be  reason- 
able to  think,  that,  some  of  them  being  inhabitants  of  Arabia  Deser- 
ta, it  should  be  concerted  among  them  to  meet  at  the  residence  of 
Job ;  since  it  is  evident,  that  Eliphaz  lived  at  Theman,  in  the  ex- 
treme parts  of  Idumaea?  With  respect  to  the  Aisitas  of  Ptolemy 
(for  so  it  is  written,  and  not  Au$itas)  it  has  no  agreement,  not  so 
much  as  in  a  single  letter,  with  the  Hebrew  Gnutz.  The  LXX.  in- 
deed call  that  country  by  the  name  Ausitida,  but  they  describe  it  as 
situated  in  Idumsea ;  and  they  account  Job  himself  an  Idumaean, 
and  a  descendant  of  Esau.  See  the  Appendix  of  the  LXX.  to  the 
book  of  Job,  and  HYDE,  Not.  in  PcritzoL  chap.  xi.  LOWTH. 

On  this  much  disputed  subject,  compare  Jahn,  Introduction  to 
the  Old  Testament,  (pp.  458 — 482  of  Turner's  translation) ;  Eich- 
horn,  Einleitung  in  das  Alte  Test.  (Band  V.  S.  114  f£) ;  Herder, 
Geist  der  ebr.  Poesie,  Th.  I.  S.  112  ff. ;  and  Rosenmueller  in  Jobum 
(p.  23  seqq.) ;  also  Noyes's  Job,  Introduc.  S. 

[B.  p.  26C.J     Antiquity  of  tlic  poem. 

In  opposition  to  the  antiquity  of  the  poem,  and  to  what  I  have 
urged  above,  that  it  appears  to  have  no  connexion  with,  or  relation 
to,  the  affairs  of  the  Israelites,  appeals  have  been  made  to  JOB  xxxi. 
28.  See  A  free  and  candid  Examination  of  the  Bishop  of  Lon- 
don's Sermon,  Anonymous,  p.  165 ;  in  which  the  author  inquires, 
"  In  what  nation  upon  earth  idolatry  was  ever  accounted  a  crime  but 
under  the  Jewish  economy  V  His  argument  is  proposed  as  unan- 
swerable, and  is  thought  to  be  sufficiently  confirmed  by  the  authori- 
ty of  Mr.  LOCKE.  I  will,  however,  appeal  to  a  higher  authority  than 
that  of  LOCKE,  namely,  that  of  reason  and  the  sacred  writings,  and 
will  answer  the  question  in  a  few  words :  Under  the  patriarchal 
economy,  in  every  tribe  and  family  under  Abraham,  Melchizedek, 


452  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXIt. 

Job,  and  the  rest.  On  the  increase  of  idolatry  Abraham  was  called 
by  the  divine  command  from  Chaldea,  to  the  end,  that  from  him 
should  proceed  a  nation  separate  from  all  others,  who  should  wor- 
ship the  true  God,  should  afford  a  perfect  example  of  pure  religion, 
and  bear  testimony  against  the  worship  of  vain  gods.  Was  it  not, 
therefore,  the  duty  of  Abraham,  who  in  his  own  tribe  or  family  pos- 
sessed all  the  attributes  of  sovereignty,  to  punish  idolatry  as  well  as 
homicide,  adultery,  or  other  heinous  crimes?  Was  it  not  the  duty -of 
Melchizedek,  of  Job,  of  all  those  patriarchal  princes,  who  regarded 
the  worship  of  the  true  God,  sedulously  to  prevent  every  defection 
from  it ;  to  restrain  those  who  were  disposed  to  forsake  it,  and  to 
punish  the  obstinate  and  the  rebellious  ?  In  fact,  in  this  allusion  to 
the  exertion  of  the  judicial  authority  against  idolatry,  and  against  the 
particular  species  which  is  mentioned  here,  namely,  the  worship  of 
the  sun  and  moon  (the  earliest  species  of  idolatry)  consists  the  most 
complete  proof  of  the  antiquity  of  the  poem,  and  the  decisive  mark  of 
the  patriarchal  age.  But  if  it  should  be  suspected,  that  the  ingenui- 
ty of  the  poet  might  lead  him  to  imitate  with  accuracy  the  manners 
of  the  age  which  he  describes,  this  indeed  would  be  more  to  the  pur- 
pose, and  a  more  plausible  argument  against  the  antiquity  of  the 
poem :  but  I  cannot  possibly  attribute  such  address  and  refinement 
to  a  poet  in  a  barbarous  age,  and  after  the  Babylonish  captivity.  Fur- 
ther than  this,  the  style  of  the  poem  savours  altogether  of  the  an- 
tique ;  insomuch,  that  whoever  could  suppose  it  written  after  the  Ba- 
bylonish captivity,  would  fall  little  short  of  the  error  of  Hardouin, 
who  ascribed  the  golden  verses  of  Virgil,  Horace,  etc.  to  the  iron  age 
of  monkish  pedantry  and  ignorance. 

With  regard  to  the  other  difficulty,  the  solution  of  which  appears 
so  embarrassing,  namely,  how  any  person  not  acquainted  with  the 
Jewish  economy  could  assert,  that  "  God  visits  the  sins  of  the  fath- 
ers upon  the  children,"  Job  xxi.  19  ?  Let  the  candid  observer  for 
the  present  content  himself  with  this  verse  of  Horace. 

"  Delicta  majorum  immeritus  lues, 

"  Romane." Lcnvrn. 

Contra  plenum  esse  lobi  librum  Chaldaicis  forrnis,  vocibus,  lo- 
quendi  formulis,  adeoque  valde  recentem  aetatem  sapere,  demon- 
stravit  GEO.  HENR.  BERNSTEIN  in  Commentatione  vermicule  scripta 
de  aetate,  argumento  etconsilio  libri  lobi,  (in  den  Analekt.cn  flier  das 
Sludium  der  exegetischen  und  systematichen  Theologie,  P.  III.  p.  49 
seqq.)  Ceterum  quam  Clericus  et  Warburtonus  primi  proposuere 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII.  453 


sententiam  (vide  lobum  Latine  versuni  et  anatatione  perpetua  a  no- 
bis  illustratum,  Prolegomm.  P.  XXXIV.)  sub  Tobi  persona  adumbra- 
ri  populum  Hebraeum,  in  Bubylonico  exsilio  multa  acerba  perpes- 
sum,  eiusque  consolandi  causa  poema  compositum  esse,  tarn  ingeni- 
ose  adornavit  Bernstein  tantoque  argumentorum  pondere  commenda- 
vit,  ut  neminem,  qui  illius  scriptionem  legerit,  futurum  esse  existi- 
memus,  cui  suam  sententiam  non  persuadeat  ROSENMUELLER. 

On  this  subject  there  are  some  questions  to  which,  so  far  as  I 
know,  no  critic  has  yet  given  a  satisfactory  answer. 

If  the  poem  of  Job  be  so  ancient  as  some  have  contended ;  how 
happens  it  that  it  had  no  influence  on  the  subsequent  Hebrew  litera- 
ture? and  that  there  is  no  allusion  to  it  until  the  time  of  Ezekiel? 
(Ezek.  14-  14).  If  it  were  the  production  of  a  Gentile,  and  not  of 
a  native  Hebrew ;  how  could  the  Jews  be  induced  to  receive  the 
work  of  a  foreigner  into  their  canon  ?  Or,  how  could  a  foreigner  ob- 
tain such  a  perfect  mastery  of  the  Hebrew  language  1  for  I  am  quite 
sure  that  no  one  who  knows  any  thing  of  the  business  of  translating, 
will  contend  that  the  book  of  Job  is  a  translation.  On  the  other 
hand,  if  the  book  be  of  more  recent  date  ;  how  happens  it  that  it 
does  not  contain  the  remotest  allusion  to  any  part  of  the  Israelitish 
history  1  Or,  how  is  it  possible  that  a  work  of  such  sublimity  of 
thought,  such  conciseness  and  energy  of  expression,  such  purity  of 
language,  should  be  produced  in  the  same  age  and  nation  as  the 
books  of  Ezekiel,  Daniel,  Ezra,  etc.  ?  For  as  to  the  Chaldaisms  of 
which  Rosenmueller  speaks,  they  would  depend  more  on  the  region, 
than  on  the  age,  in  which  the  writer  lived.  S. 

[C.  p.  272.]     Structure  and  contents  of  the  poem. 

With  the  views  of  Lowth  on  this  subject  it  may  be  well  to  com- 
pare those  of  Michaelis,  as  expressed  in  the  very  judicious  transla- 
tion and  abridgement  of  the  Professor's  Note,  by  Mr.  Gregory.  The 
reader  should  be  reminded,  however,  that  the  investigations  of  the 
more  recent  critics  (referred  to  in  Note  A)  are  much  more  favoura- 
ble to  the  hypothesis  of  Lowth  than  to  that  of  Michaelis.  Many  of 
the  opinions  of  the  latter,  indeed,  (such  as  the  supposed  allusions  to 
the  Isles  of  the  Blessed),  are  altogether  the  product  of  his  own  fan- 
cy, without  the  least  foundation  in  fact.  S. 

It  has  long  been  a  dispute  among  the  learned,  whether  the  poem 
of  Job  consists  of  fable  or  a  true  history  :  this  question,  if  authority 


454  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII. 

alone  be  applied  to,  must  long  since  have  been  decided  in  favour  of 
those  who  assert  it  to  be  a  real  history. 

With  me  I  confess,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  no  longer  matter  of 
opinion,  but  I  feel  very  little  doubt  that  the  subject  of  the  poem  is 
altogether  fabulous,  and  designed  to  teach  us  that  "  the  rewards  of 
virtue  being  in  another  state,  it  is  very  possible  for  the  good  to  suf- 
fer afflictions  in  this  life  :  but  that  when  it  so  happens,  it  is  permit- 
ted by  Providence  for  the  wisest  reasons,  though  they  may  not  be 
obvious  to  human  eyes."  But  before  I  proceed  to  examine  the 
grounds  of  this  opinion,  it  may  be  necessary  to  premise  a  few  re- 
marks in  reply  to  those  who  may  think  the  divine  authority  of  the 
book  affected  by  the  supposition  of  its  not  being  founded  in  fact. 
For  my  own  part,  I  cannot  conceive  that  the  sanctity,  the  dignity, 
or  the  utility  of  that  book  will  be  in  the  least  affected,  though  we 
should  suppose  no  such  person  as  Job  had  ever  existed. 

If  moral  precepts,  conveyed  in  the  garb  of  fabulous  narrations, 
allure  the  hearers  by  the  pleasure  they  afford,  if  they  strike  the  mind 
more  forcibly,  are  more  easily  understood,  and  better  retained  than 
abstract  sentiments,  I  see  no  reason  why  this  mode  of  writing  should 
be  deemed  unworthy  of  inspiration.  Indeed,  on  the  contrary,  we 
find  it  made  use  of  by  Christ  himself,  nor  does  it  at  all  derogate 
from  his  force  as  a  moral  teacher,  that  the  good  Samaritan,  the  rich 
man  and  Lazarus,  etc.  were  not  real  persons. 

I  shall  not  however  rest  here ;  for  I  assert  further,  that  the  book 
of  Job  is  more  instructive  as  a  fable,  than  it  could  possibly  be  as  a 
true  history.  Taken  as  a  mere  relation  of  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  ne- 
cessary to  suppose  that  the  sentiments  and  conversations  are  exhib- 
ited exactly  as  they  were  spoken,  and  are  the  sentiments  of  mere 
mortals  not  actuated  by  the  Spirit  of  God  ;  for  we  find  that  God  has 
reproved  both  Job  and  his  friends  as  being  severally  mistaken.  It 
would  then  be  impossible  to  determine  what  was  true  or  what  false ; 
no  doctrine  of  religion,  no  precept  of  morality,  could  with  certainty 
be  deduced  from  these  conversations.  In  the  whole  book,  the  his- 
torical part  (and  how  short  is  that !)  and  the  words  attributed  to  God 
himself,  would  be  alone  divine,  or  of  divine  authority,  the  rest  would 
be  all  human.  Considered  as  a  fable,  the  case  is  different.  The 
author,  composing  under  the  influence  of  divine  inspiration,  we  may 
reasonably  suppose  has  attributed  to  the  fictitious  characters  such 
sentiments  as  were  proper  and  natural  to  their  state  and  circumstan- 
ces :  we  have  then,  in  the  first  place,  a  picture  of  the  human  mind 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII.  455 

drawn  by  the  finger  of  God ;  and  in  the  next,  we  may  rest  satisfied 
that  Job  and  his  friends  err  only  in  the  principal  matter  upon  which 
they  dispute,  and  only  on  the  points  for  which  God  has  reproved 
them ;  but  that  whatever  is  said  exclusive  of  this  is  founded  on  di- 
vine truth;  such  is  the  mention  of  the  angels  by  Eliphaz,  and  the 
assertion  of  Job,  that  there  is  none  pure  among  mortals.  Finally, 
we  are  by  these  means  enabled  both  to  determine  what  are  the  sen- 
timents which  immediately  meet  with  the  approbation  of  God,  and 
what  are  the  errors  which  are  intended  to  be  exposed.  An  able 
writer  in  dialogue  never  fails  to  discover  his  own  sentiments :  as 
from  the  books  of  Cicero  on  the  Nature  of  the  Gods,\ve  may  collect 
with  ease  what  the  author  thought,  or  rather  doubted  upon  the  sub- 
ject, which  would  have  been  impossible,  if  he  had  only  reported  the 
actual  words  of  the  philosophers  who  are  supposed  to  have  convers- 
ed on  that  subject. 

I  will  now  proceed  freely  to  explain  what  at  first  I  undertook  to 
prove  concerning  the  book  in  question.  It  is  surely  more  becom- 
ing to  consider  the  exordium,  in  which  Satan  appears  as  the  accuser 
of  Job,  rather  in  the  light  of  a  fable  than  of  a  true  narrative.  It  is 
surely  incredible,  that  such  a  conversation  ever  took  place  between 
the  Almighty  and  Satan,  who  is  supposed  to  return  with  news  from 
the  terrestrial  regions.  Indeed,  the  commentators  who  have  un- 
dertaken to  vindicate  this  part  of  the  book,  have  done  it  with  so  much 
asperity,  that  they  seem  conscious  of  the  difficulty  under  which  it 
labours. 

Nor  will  it  suffice  to  answer,  as  some  temperate  and  rational  com- 
mentator, like  our  author,  probably  will,  and  indeed  as  he  himself 
hints  :  that  the  great  outline  of  the  fact  only  is  true  ;  and  that  the 
exordium  is  set  off  with  some  poetical  ornaments,  among  which  is 
to  be  accounted  the  conversation  between  God  and  Satan.  For  on 
this  very  conversation  the  whole  plot  is  founded,  and  the  whole 
story  and  catastrophe  depends.  One  of  the  best  of  men  is  thrown 
into  so  many  unexpected  and  undeserved  evils,  that  neither  he  nor 
his  adversaries  are  able  to  conceive  how  it  can  be  consistent  with  a 
benevolent  being,  to  plunge  a  good  man  into  so  great  afflictions  : 
nor  has  God  condescended  to  explain  the  motives  of  it  to  them,  but 
reproves  them  all  for  investigating  matters  beyond  their  reach.  But 
'the  author  of  the  book  undoes  the  knot  which  is  left  unresolved  in 
these  conversations,  and  gives  the  reader  to  understand  how  indif- 
ferently those  reason  concerning  the  Divine  Providence,  and  the 


456  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII. 


happiness  or  misery  of  mankind,  who  are  only  partially  informed  of 
causes  and  events.  The  Almighty  acts  for  the  honour  of  Job,  of 
human  nature,  and  of  piety  itself;  he  permits  Job  to  be  unhappy 
for  a  time,  and  refutes  the  accusations  of  Satan  even  by  the  very 
means  which  he  himself  pointed  out.  Suppose,  therefore,  that  what 
is  thus  related  of  Satan  be  fictitious,  and  all  the  rest  true,  instead  of 
the  difficulty  being  done  away,  the  consequence  will  be,  that  the 
whole  plot  remains  without  any  solution  whatever.  What  our  au- 
thor has  added  concerning  one  of  the  historical  books  of  Scripture, 
in  which  a  similar  passage  occurs,  1  Kings  xxii.  19 — 22,  appears 
not  at  all  to  the  purpose.  It  is  not  a  history  related  by  the  author, 
nor  does  the  author  speak  in  his  own  person,  but  a  prophet  explains 
a  vision  which  he  has  had.  But  those  who  suppose  the  book  of  Job 
to  be  founded  upon  fact,  allow  that  the  historian  speaks  in  the  first 
and  second  chapters,  who,  if  he  did  invent,  would  certainly,  one 
would  think,  take  that  liberty  only  in  matters  which  did  not  affect 
the  great  scope  of  the  history,  and  not  in  a  matter  which,  if  it  be 
supposed  fictitious,  reduces  the  whole  book  to  nothing. 

Moreover,  the  style  of  the  whole  book  being  poetical,  and  so 
sublime,  that  I  defy  any  man  to  imitate  it  in  any  extempore  effusion, 
is  an  irrefragable  proof  in  favour  of  my  opinion.  Our  author  indeed 
pleads  a  very  specious  excuse  :  he  thinks  that  the  conversation  and 
speeches  of  the  different  characters  have  been  poetically  ornament- 
ed. And  this  argument  I  do  not  wish  to  confute.  There  are  how- 
ever others  who  defend  the  historical  truth  of  the  poem  in  a  manner 
not  quite  so  modest.  Among  the  rest,  the  famous  SCHULTENS  alle- 
ges it  not  to  be  incredible,  that  these  are  the  actual  words  of  the 
disputants,  if  we  consider  the  amazing  faculty  which  the  Arabians 
possess  of  making  extempore  verses.  In  answer  to  this,  I  must  con- 
fess, that  all  he  can  urge  on  this  subject  will  never  persuade  me, 
that  the  poetry,  which  is  confessedly  superior  to  all  that  human  genius 
has  been  able  to  produce,  is  nothing  more  than  an  extempore  effu- 
sion. Indeed  nothing  can  be  more  ridiculous,  than  to  suppose  men 
in  circumstances  of  so  great  distress,  in  the  midst  of  difficulties  and 
afflictions,  capable  of  amusing  themselves  with  making  extempore 
verses. 

These  objections  which  I  have  just  stated,  are  well  known  to  the 
commentators  :  but  there  are  others  not  quite  so  common,  which  in- 
duce me  to  suppose  the  subject  of  this  poem  not  historical,  but  fabu- 
lous. So  many  round  numbers  and  multiplications  of  them  occur  in 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXII. 


457 


the  life  of  Job,  as  to  be  quite  incompatible  with  mere  chance.      Ten 
children  perish,  seven  sons  (which  though  it  be  not  a  round  number, 
is  yet  held  sacred  and  mysterious  by  the  Orientals)  and  three  daugh- 
7000  sheep,  3000  camels,  1000  oxen,  and  exactly  half  the 
number  of  asses.     In  lieu  of  these  there  are  restored  to  him,  14,000 
sheep,  6000  camels,  2000  oxen,  and  1000  asses,  exactly  the  dupli- 
cate of  the  former  numbers;  together  with  exactly  the  same  number 
of  children  as  he  had  lost,  seven  sons  and  three  daughters,  and  these 
from  one  wife.     The  same  principle  is  found  to  extend  to  the  years 
)f  Job's  prosperity,   which  is  a  multiplication  of  the  number  70. 
These  circumstances  betray  art  and  fiction  in  the  narrator,  who  has 
introduced  these  round  numbers,  which  we  know  are  the  first  to  pre- 
it  themselves  to  the  mind  :  it  bears  no  appearance  of  chance  or 
sualty,  which,  when  it  predominates  in  a  series  of  events,  produc- 
js  a  w,onderful  variety,  but  very  little  of  regularity  or  equality.    The 
lame  of  JOB  too,  which  in  the  Arabic  means  returning  to  God,  and 
>ving  him,  and  hating  whatever  is  contrary  to  him,  is  so  adapted  to 
character  of  his  latter  years,  that  we  can  never  suppose  it  a  name 
jiven  to  him  by  his  parents,  but  invented  by  the  author  of  the  story. 
A  fourth  argument  is,  that  the  scene  is  laid   in  Arabia,  yet  the 
mi  abounds  so  much  in  imagery  borrowed  from  Egypt,  that  it  is 
lain  that  country  must  have  been  extremely  well  known  to  the  au- 
lor,  and  indeed  predominant  in  his  mind,  as  I  have  endeavoured  to 
rove  in  a  Dissertation  recited  before  the  R.  S.  of  Gottingen. 

But  the  most  powerful  of  all  proofs  is,  that  some  things  appear  in 
le  book  of  Job  which  could  not  possibly  have  place  in  a  true  histo- 
At  a  period  when  the  longevity  of  the  patriarchs  was  reduced 
within  the  limit  of  two  hundred  years,  Job  is  said  to  have  lived  140 
'ears  after  his  malady,  and  therefore  could  not  be  very  ancient  when 
fell  into  this  malady ;  nevertheless  he  upbraids  his  friends  with 
icir  youth  (who  by  the  way  could  not  be  very  young,  since  Elihu 
xxxii.  6,  7,  9,  reverences  their  hoary  age)  and  adds,  that  "  he 
)uld  have  disdained  to  set  their  fathers  with  the  dogs  of  his  flock," 
LX.  1.  But  what  is  more  extraordinary,  these  same  men  boast 
their  own  age,  and  seem  to  exact  a  degree  of  reverence  from  Job 
their  junior  :  thus  Eliphaz,  chap.  xx.  10,  "  With  us  are  both  the 
rrey-headed  and  the  very  aged  men  much  older  than  thy  father." 
"hese  passages,  therefore,  so  directly  contradict  each  other,  that 
jy  cannot  be  connected  with  true  history.  The  opprobrium  which 
casts  upon  the  birth  of  his  friends  seems  also  an  inconsistency, 
58 


458  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXlf. 


xxx.  1 — 6,  as  it  is  incredible  that  so  noble  and  rich  a  man  should 
ever  have  chosen  his  friends  from  the  meanest  of  the  people. 

It  remains  only  to  remove  one  objection,  with  which  those  who 
contend  for  the  historical  truth  of  the  book  of  Job,  may  press  us.  Job 
is  quoted  by  Ezekiel  along  with  Noah  and  Daniel,  whom  we  know 
to  have  been  real  persons,  and  they  are  proposed  by  James  as  an  ex- 
ample of  patience,  Ezek.  xiv.  14,  20.  JAMES  v.  1 1  ;  as  if  it  were 
improper  or  indecent  to  recommend  the  virtues  of  fictitious  charac- 
ters to  our  imitation,  or  as  if  this  were  not  in  fact  the  end  of  deline- 
ating such  characters.  Neither  is  there  the  least  impropriety  in  in- 
stancing the  same  virtues  in  real  and  fictitious  characters.  Suppose 
a  father  to  recommend  to  his  daughters  the  examples  of  Lucretia 
and  Pamela,  as  models  of  chastity  and  virtue ;  who  would  esteem 
such  a  discourse  reprehensible,  or  think  that  it  either  took  from  the 
truth  of  the  history,  or  gave  a  reality  to  the  fiction  1 

To  return  to  the  point  from  which  we  set  out :  this  poem  seems 
to  treat  of  the  afflictions  which  may  sometimes  happen  to  good  men, 
at  the  same  time  that  the  author  seems  to  wish  to  accommodate  the 
consolation  to  the  people  of  God,  and  to  represent  their  oppression 
under  the  character  of  Job.  To  this  opinion  it  is  objected  by  our 
author,  that  there  appears  nothing  in  the  book  like  an  allusion  to  the 
manners,  rites,  or  affairs  of  the  Israelites.  As  to  the  manners,  they 
are  what  I  call  Abrahamic,  or  such  as  were  at  that  period  common 
to  all  the  seed  of  Abraham  at  that  time,  Israelites,  Ishmaelites,  and 
Iduniceans.  But  perhaps  it  may  be  thought  necessary  to  instance 
those  customs  which  were  peculiar  to  the  Israelites,  and  by  which 
they  were  distinguished  from  the  Arabians :  this,  however,  would 
not  display  much  judgement  in  the  author  of  a  poem,  the  scene  of 
which  lies  in  Arabia ;  besides  that  most  of  the  peculiar  customs  of 
the  Israelites,  those  I  mean  which  distinguished  them  from  the  other 
descendants  of  Abraham,  were  either  derived  from  the  Egyptians,  or 
were  taught  them  by  Moses  :  and  who  would  require,  that  such 
things  as  the  paschal  lamb,  and  the  Mosaic  feasts  and  priesthood, 
should  be  introduced  into  such  a  poem  ?  The  frequent  allusions  how- 
ever to  the  country  and  the  productions  of  Egypt  abundantly  answer 
this  objection.  Insomuch,  that  though  the  scene  is  laid  in  Arabia, 
one  would  imagine  the  actors  had  been  Egyptians.  Nor  are  there 
wanting  allusions  to  the  circumstances  of  the  Israelites.  These  like 
Job  lost  their  children  and  possessions  by  the  tyranny  of  Pharaoh  : 
and,  if  I  am  cot  mistaken,  the  disease  is  the  same  which  affected 


NOTE  ON  LECTURE  XXXIII.  459 


Job,  with  that  which  prevailed  among  the  Egyptians  by  the  com- 
mand of  Moses. 

From  these  circumstances  I  am  much  inclined  to  the  opinion 
which  attributes  this  book  to  Moses.  For  is  it  to  be  imagined,  that 
a  native  of  Idumaea  should  crowd  his  poem  with  images  and  figures 
borrowed  from  Egypt  ?  Or  what  native  of  Arabia  (for  it  must  be  al- 
lowed that  the  book  of  Job  has  some  allusions  peculiar  to  Arabia) 
was  so  likely  to  intermingle  the  imagery  of  both  countries  as  Moses  ? 
To  these  may  be  added  the  allusions  to  the  isles  of  the  blessed,  which 
are  common  to  the  book  of  Job  and  the  Mosaic  writings.  I  am  well 
aware  that  there  is  more  of  the  tragic,  more  of  strong  poetic  feeling 
in  this  book,  than  in  the  other  relics  of  Mosaic  poetry,  which  has  in- 
duced our  author  to  remark  the  discrepancy  of  style.  But  how  dif- 
ferent are  the  language  and  sentiments  of  a  man  raging  in  the 
heights  of  despair,  from  those  which  are  to  be  sung  in  the  temple  of 
God  !  We  must  also  remember,  that  the  poetic  style  of  an  author  in 
the  flower  of  his  youth  is  very  different  from  that  of  his  latter  days. 
If  Moses  were  really  the  author  of  this  poem,  he  composed  it  about 
the  age  of  forty  years  ;  but  the  rest  of  his  poems  were  written  be- 
tween the  85th  and  120th  year  of  his  age  ;  at  which  period  I  am  of- 
ten surprised  to  meet  with  so  much  vigour  of  language  and  senti- 
ment :  and  no  other  difference  of  style  have  I  been  able  to  discover. 

MICHAELIS. 


NOTE  ON    LECTURE  XXXIII. 

[A.  p.  281.]     The  look  of  Job  not  a  perfect  drama. 

Considering  the  strong  sense  and  accurate  judgement  of  Dr. 
Lowth,  especially  taking  into  view  his  very  just  remarks  on  the  He- 
brew writers,  Lect.  XXIV.  p.  205  ;  it  is  not  a  little  surprising  to  see 
him  gravely  discussing  the  question,  whether  the  Song  of  Solomon 
and  the  book  of  Job  be  perfect  dramas  1  What  possible  concern 
have  the  old  Hebrew  writers,  (who  had  all  the  simplicity  of  children 
in  their  modes  of  thought  and  feeling),  with  the  refined  and  artificial 
rules  of  composition,  which  were  not  invented  till  ages  after  their 
death  ?  What  have  Job  or  Solomon  to  do  with  Aristotle  and  the 
Greeks  ?  They  were  totally  diverse  in  every  circumstance  of  their 
climate,  character,  habits,  and  intellectual  developements  ;  they 
sought  different  objects,  they  followed  different  models ;  and  there  is 
scarcely  a  single  point  of  resemblance  in  their  respective  composi- 


460  NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXIV. 

tions.  The  inquiry,  then,  whether  the  artificial  names  appropriated 
to  Greek  compositions  can  be  applied  to  those  of  the  Hebrews,  is  as 
vain  and  useless  as  the  inquiry  whether  the  technical  terms  of  mod- 
ern European  tactics  can  be  properly  employed  to  designate  the  evo- 
lutions of  the  ancient  Oriental  armies.  The  difference  between  the 
modes  of  warfare  in  this  case,  is  no  greater  than  that  between  the 
modes  of  thinking  and  writing  in  the  other.  Yet  so  strong  and  last- 
ing are  the  prejudices  of  early  education,  when  uncorrected  by  a 
subsequent  and  more  extensive  course  of  study,  that  such  a  man  as 
Dr.  Lowth  thought  it  necessary  to  go  into  a  learned  and  laborious 
investigation  of  the  propriety  of  applying  Greek  names  to  Hebrew 
books ;  and  he  seems  to  apprehend  that  the  latter  would  lose  some- 
what of  their  perfection,  if  they  were  not  conformed  to  Greek 
models.  S. 


NOTES  ON   LECTURE  XXXIV. 

[A.  p.  287.]     JOB  xvin.  4. 
The  LXX.  interpret  the  verse  thus  :  TI  yap  ;  lav  ov  a 


torui  TI  vn  OVQUVOV  ;  :i  What!  if  thou  diest,  shall  the 
whole  earth  be  desolate  1  Which  version,  or  rather  paraphrase,  is 
most  elegant,  and  in  my  opinion  finely  accommodated  to  the  pur- 
pose of  the  sacred  writer.  When  the  Orientals  would  reprove  the 
pride  or  arrogance  of  any  person,  it  is  common  for  them  to  desire 
him  to  call  to  mind  how  little  and  contemptible  he  and  every  mor- 
tal is,  in  these  or  similar  apothegms  ; 

"  What  though  Mohammed  were  dead  ? 

"  His  Imauns  (or  ministers)  conducted  the  affairs  of  the  nation. 

"  The  universe  shall  not  fall  for  his  sake. 

"  The  world  does  not  subsist  for  one  man  alone. 

Nay,  this  very  phrase  is  still  in  use  among  the  Arabic  writers.   GOL. 
Col.  1570.  HUNT. 

[B.  p.  288.]     Conduct  of  Job's  friends. 

Our  author  is  too  severe  in  his  animadversions  on  the  conduct  of 
Job's  three  friends,  and  his  translator  has  made  him  appear  more 
harsh  than  he  really  is.  The  three  sages  were  touched  with  the 
tenderest  sympathy  at  the  sight  of  Job's  affliction  ;  and  were,  un- 
doubtedly, sincerely  desirous  of  affording  him  consolation.  (See  Job 
2:  1.1  —  13).  But  with  their  views  of  the  justice  and  goodness  of 


NOTES  ON  LECTURE  XXXIV.  461 

' 

God,  they  could  not  suppose  that  their  friend  had  been  thus  severe- 
ly afflicted  without  some  fault  of  his  own  ;  and  when  they  heard 
him  complaining  so  bitterly  of  his  troubles,  it  struck  them  like  mur- 
muring against  providence.  Eliphaz,  therefore,  ventures  mildly  to 
reprove  him,  and  intimates,  though  in  the  gentlest  manner  possible, 
that  God  had  not  afflicted  him  without  cause.  The  suffering  pa- 
triach,  conscious  of  his  own  rectitude,  and  indignant  at  the  suppos- 
ed insinuations  of  his  friend,  breaks  out  still  more  warmly  in  protes- 
tations of  his  innocence  and  in  bitter  complaints  of  his  unmerited 
woes  ;  till  at  length,  jealousy  for  the  honour  of  God,  the  pride  of 
opinion,  and  the  warmth  of  discussion,  gradually  provoke  the  three 
friends  to  utter  the  most  severe  and  unfounded  reproaches  against 
their  unfortunate  companion,  who  indignantly  repels  their  accusa- 
tions with  increasing  zeal,  till  he  silences,  and  obtains  a  complete 
victory  over  them,  by  his  superior  richness  of  thought  and  copious- 
ness of  language. 

In  this  state  of  the  controversy,  Elihu  steps  in  :  a  young  man  of 
great  fluency,  florid  eloquence,  and  a  high  opinion  of  his  own  capa- 
city. He  professes  to  adopt  a  middle  course  between  Job  and  the 
former  speakers  ;  he  repeats  their  most  important  ideas  with  a  lit- 
tle variation  ;  he  adopts  their  imagery,  which  he  amplifies  and  ex- 
tends, without  improving  it ;  he  adds  figure  to  figure,  and  sentence 
to  sentence,  almost  without  end  or  object.  He  pauses  occasionally, 
apparently  with  the  hope  that  Job  would  answer  him ;  but  the  old 
sage  does  not  deign  the  young  man  a  word  in  reply.  Hiob 
schweigti  (says  Eichhorn),  welchcr  Riese  wird  sick  auch  mit  cinem 
Knaben  messen  1  The  whole  discourse  of  Elihu  is  evidently  pre- 
paratory to  the  introduction  of  the  Deity  in  the  thirty-eighth  chapter, 
and  is  admirably  adapted  to  exhibit  the  sublimity  of  this  scene  in 
the  most  favourable  light.  S. 

[C.  p.  291.]     JOB  xxxvii.  4. 

Various  interpretations  have  been  given  to  the  last  clause  of  this 
verse,  which  Lowth  renders  ;  Neque  investigari  poterit,  cum  audita 
fuerit.vox  eius.  In  Hebrew,  nblp  StttiJ-)-1^  Wp.??  *&?•  Elihu  is 
here  describing  the  majesty  of  God  as  exhibited  in  tempests ;  and 
the  meaning  of  this  sentence  probably  is  :  he  holdcth  them  not  back, 
that  is,  the  rain,  hail,  etc.  (compare  v.  6),  when  his  voice  is  heard, 
that  is,  in  the  thunder.  So  De  Wette  and  Gesenius  explain  the 
verse.  S. 


LIST  OF  BOOKS 

MOST  FREQUENTLY  REFERRED  TO  IN  THE  PRECEDING  NOTES, 

[For  the  sake  of  brevity,  the  titles  of  those  books  to  which  con- 
stant reference  is  made,  are  not  fully  written  in  the  Notes.  They 
are  inserted  here  for  the  purpose  of  securing  the  student  against 
mistake  in  regard  to  the  references,  and  of  directing  him  to  the  most 
valuable  sources  of  information  on  the  general  subject  of  Hebrew 
Poetry."] 

ROBERT  LOWTH,  de  Sacra  Poesi  Hebraeorum  Praelectionc* 
Academicae ;  cum  Notis  et  Epimetris  JOA.  DAY.  MICHAELIS,  suis 
Animadversionibus  adjectis  edidit  ERN.  FRID.  CAR.  ROSENMUELLER. 

I.  Vol.  8vo.  Lipsiae,  1815. 

SIR  WILLIAM  JONES,  Poeseos  Asiaticae  Commentariorum  Libri 
Sex,  cum  Appcndice.  I.  Vol.  8vo.  Londini,  1774. 

JOHANN  GOTTFRIED  VON  HERDER,  vom  Geist  der  ebraeischen 
Poesie.  Eine  Anleitung  fuer  die  Liebhaber  derselben  und  der  aeltes- 
ten  Geschichte  des  menschlichen  Geistes.  II.  Th.  8vo.  Leipzig,  1825. 

,  Briefe  das  Studium  der  Theologie  be- 

treffend.  IV.  Th.  12mo.  Weimar,  1785. 

JOHANN  GOTTFRIED  EICHHORN,  Einleitung  in  das  Alte  Testa- 
ment. V.  Baende,  8vo.  Goettingen,  1823 — 4. 

,  Commentarius  in  Apocalypsin  Joannis. 

II.  Vol.  12mo.  Gottingae,  1791. 

WILHELM  MARTIN  LEBERECHT  DE  WETTE,  Commentar  ueber 
die  Psalmen.  I.  Th.  8vo.  Heidelberg,  1823. 

GOTTLOB  WILHELM  MEYER,  Versucheiner  Hermeneutik  des  Alten 
Testaments.  II.  Th.  8vo.  Luebeck,  1800. 

JOHANN  JOACHIM  BELLERMANN,  Versuch  ueber  die  Metrik  der  He- 
braeer.  Eine  Beilage  zu  den  hebraeischen  Sprachlehren  und  zu  den 
Einleitungen  in  die  Schriften  des  alten  Testaments.  I.Th.  8vo.  Ber- 
lin, 1813. 

WILHELM  GESENIUS,  Geschichte  der  hebraeischen  Sprache  und 
Schrift.  I.  Th.  8vo.  Leipzig,  1815. 

,  Ausfuehrliches  grammatisch-kritisches  Lehrge- 

baeude  der  hebraeischen  Sprache.  I.  Th.  8vo.  Leipzig,  1817. 

•   ,  Commentar  ueber   den  Jesaia.   III.  Th.  8vo. 

Leipzig,  1823. 

,  Hebraeisches  und  Chaldaeisches  Handwoerter- 

buch  ueber  das  Alte  Testament.  I.  Th.  Leipzig,  1823. 

ERNST  FRIEDRICH  KARL  ROSENMUELLER,  Scholia  in  Vetus  Tes- 
tamentum;  (scilicet  in  Jobum,  Psalmos,  et  Librospropheticos).  The 
last  editions. 

Die  Schriften  des  Alten  Testaments,  neu  uebersetzt  von  J.  C.  W. 
AUGUSTI,  und  W.  M.  L.  DE  WETTE.  IV.  Th.  8vo.  Heidelberg, 
1809—10. 

[The  titles  of  other  works,  to  which  there  is  less  frequent  occa«- 
sion  for  reference,  are  inserted  in  the  Notes.] 


INDEX 


OF    THE    PASSAGES     OF     SCRIPTURE    TRANSLATED    OR    EXPLAINED 
THIS    WORK. 


GENESIS.                              2  SAMUEL.                               PSALMS. 

fchap.  Verse.              Page. 

Chap.  Verse.              Page. 

Chap.  Verse. 

Page. 

1.      3            131 

1.     17-27        196-99,410 

2. 

371 

4.    23,24         41,332-33 

3.    33,34        186 

6 

164 

9.    25-27         41 

11.      6 

76 

49.                    333 

9               82 

2  KINGS. 

16,17. 
18.      7-14 

350 

77—8 

19.    21-34       153 

8-16 

361 

EXODUS. 

21.     13               62 

16 

78 

15.      1-21  ,      223-30 
9,  10        142 
11,  12        141 

20,  21        155 

1  CHRONICLES. 
i6.     31              106 

19. 
8-11 
23.      1 
24. 

223-24 
162 
215,  414 

227-28,  419 

OO"i 

29. 

231 

JOB. 

3,4 

141 

NUMBERS. 

23.    7-10         111-12 
19             134 

3.      3—7       116  ff.  383 
20-24        118 
4.      2            286 

? 

9 
33.      9 
13,14 

421-22 
131 

160 

24.    5—9         174-75 

5.    19             164 

36.      6,7 

132 

g       2  9       143 

42. 

194-95,406  ff. 

DEUTERONOMY. 

15-20       101,  103 

46.      6,  10 

163 

29.    22             360 
32.                     120  ff. 
10             126 
11             102 
23,24       399 
40-42       142 
42             160 
33.                    152 

17             378 
8.      2,3         287 
9.    16             290 
10.    11             352 
11.      2,  3         287 
6             358 
7—9       133 
14.      1—  3,G   289 
15.      4            287 

49. 
50. 
58.      5,6 
62.    12 
68.    31 
77. 
16 
18,19 
78.    38,40 

rrk 

349 
225-28 
354 
164 
340  ff. 
222-23 
108 
163 
126 

JOSHUA. 
10.    13             408 

JUDGKS. 

5.               233-34,  423  if. 
28-30        107  ff. 
14.    14              161 
15.    16             159 

»1  SAMUEL. 
2.      4—7       162 
15.    22,23       152 
24.    13             204 

16.      9-14        143 

18.      3—5       287,  460 
8,9        286 
19.                    289-90 
20.      2,  3         287 
27.      2—7       284 
11-13       284-85 
14-17       285 
31.      2—4       285 
13-15       285 
37.      1—4       291,461 
38.      4-11       131 
4-13,35  326 
39.    24,25       290 
40.    10-14       134 

59 
65 
80.      9-18 
16-18 
81. 
83.    14,16 
85.    11 
91. 
9 
92.      8 
93.      3,4 
94.      1,3 
96.    10-13 
97.      1 
98.      7,8 
7-9 

135 
136 
86 
369 
218-19 
102,378 
105 
217-18 
417 
55 
159 
159 
141 
159 
106 
141 

464 


INDEX. 


PSALMS. 

ISAIAH. 

LAMENTATIONS. 

Chap.  Verse.             Page. 

Chap.  Verse.             Page. 

Chap.  Verse.              Page. 

99.      1             141 

10.    14               95 

1.      1,2,17    105 

104.                  71  ff.  352-53 

28-32       124 

12,  16       191 

105.  20             159 

13.      6-13       143-44 

2.      4             142 

107.                   241-42 

14.      4—9       163,  426 

110.    3               82,365 
113.    5,6         161 

4-27  108-110,235  ff. 
26,27       133-34 

E/EKIEL. 

114.                   157 

15.      1             159 

28.    12            176 

121.                   248-49 

17.    12,  13       97,  376 

17-20       400 

6             354 

21.    12             326 

32.      2             341 

129.    1,2         158 

24.      1,18-20    76 

7,8           54 

6,8         101 

23               54 

133.                  215-16 

28.    23-29         83,367 

„ 

2,3           96—7 

30.    26              54 

J1OSE  A. 

135.                  390-94 

34.                 171  ff.  397-98 

6.      1,2         160 

136.                  240 

4               75 

11.      8.9         158,395 

139.                  244-45 

5             398 

13.      7,8         136 

7-10       133,  385-86 

6—7       400 

14.      6,  7         163 

15             70,352 

8-10         76 

148.                  211 

35.          171  ff.  343,  397-98 

JOEL. 

5             131 

37.    22-35       153     ' 

24             340 

1.      6,7,10    124 

PROVERBS. 

40.    12,26       131-32,385 

3.    15,16         75 

8.    27-31        104—5 

41.    15,  16         60 

43       2             163 

18            344 

10.     12             204 
13.      7             161 
20.    12            204 
15             203 

45.'      8             377 
16-19         77 
47.      l,etc.     105,379 
49.      7             159 

AMOS. 

1.      3             164 

5.      1,2         16,187 

25.    11             201 

14  15         95 

14,  16       203 
27.      6,  7         161 

51.      3'              75 

9  10         77 

MlCAH. 

23.    11             161 

15'  16         75,357-58 
53.      1—5       158 

1.      3,4           77 
6.      6,  8         152 

ECCLESIASTES. 

54.      5             160,257 

12.      2—6       83,  366 

7,  8         162 

NAHUM. 

11             202,  410 

55.    10,  11       100,  377 

1.      2             159 

SONG  OF  SOLOMON. 

60.      1             159 
1_3       157-58 
19,20         54 

3.    12              95 

1.      5             161 

62.      5             257,431 

HABAKKUK. 

2.      7            251 
10-13       260-61,444 
3.      1             251 

63.      i_3         61 

1_6       248,  387 
4—6       142 

2.                   381-82 
3.                    234-35,42 

r                 OQQ 

4.      1—5     261-62,  444  f. 

65.    13,  14       162 

D                 oui) 

8           442  ff. 

10,11       1*61,444 

ZECHARIAH. 

5.    11,14       445-46 

JEREMIAH. 

9.      5             160 

7.      6,  14        447-48 

4.    19-23       144 

ISAIAH. 

23-26         75 
9.    17-22       187 

ECCLESIASTICUS. 

2.      7             161 

22.    18             185 

24.                    206-9 

7.      2             100 

25.    3Q            136 

27            411 

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